objective
adjective
äb- \
Definition of objective
(Entry 1 of 2)
1a : relating to or existing as an object of thought without consideration of independent existence —used chiefly in medieval philosophy
b : of, relating to, or being an object, phenomenon, or condition in the realm of sensible experience independent of individual thought and perceptible by all observers : having reality independent of the mind objective reality … our reveries … are significantly and repeatedly shaped by our transactions with the objective world. —Marvin Reznikoff — compare subjective sense 3a
c of a symptom of disease : perceptible to persons other than the affected individual objective arthritis — compare subjective sense 4c
d : involving or deriving from sense perception or experience with actual objects, conditions, or phenomena objective awareness objective data
2 : relating to, characteristic of, or constituting the case of words that follow prepositions or transitive verbs The pronoun her is in the objective case in the sentence "I saw her."
3a : expressing or dealing with facts or conditions as perceived without distortion by personal feelings, prejudices, or interpretations objective art an objective history of the war an objective judgment
b of a test : limited to choices of fixed alternatives and reducing subjective factors to a minimum Each question on the objective test requires the selection of the correct answer from among several choices.
objective
noun
äb- \
Definition of objective (Entry 2 of 2)
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Other words from objective
Adjective
əb-
\
noun
Synonyms & Antonyms for objective
Synonyms: Adjective
documentary, factual, hard, historical, literal, matter-of-fact, nonfictional, true
Synonyms: Noun
aim, ambition, aspiration, design, dream, end, goal, idea, ideal, intent, intention, mark, meaning, object, plan, point, pretension, purpose, target, thing
Antonyms: Adjective
fictional, fictionalized, fictitious, nondocumentary, nonfactual, nonhistorical, unhistorical
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Examples of objective in a Sentence
Adjective
For no matter how objective Server tries to appear in detailing the highs and lows of her 67 years—the three marriages, the numerous affairs, the binges, the nightlong cruising of low-life byways and bordellos, the mainly poor movies she was in—he cannot really hide his essential fondness for her. —Peter Bogdanovich, New York Times Book Review, 23 Apr. 2006 I'm not going to read the history about it while I'm alive because I don't trust short-term history. Most historians wouldn't have voted for me, so I don't think they can write an objective history. —George W. Bush, quoted in Time, 6 Sept. 2004 "I'm not really a Hollywood person," said Mr. [Clint] Eastwood, who lives mostly in Carmel. "Not that I don't like L.A., but I'm just a Northern California guy. And it's very hard to be objective about what you're doing in a town that's all consumed by the entertainment business." —Bernard Weinraub, New York Times, 6 Aug. 1992 We need someone outside the company to give us an objective analysis. an objective assessment based solely upon the results of the experimentNoun
The first objective of the low-intensity war was to "bleed" India so that it would cut its losses and quit. —Pervez Hoodbhoy, Prospect, June 2003 The Orange Plan assumed an early Japanese capture of the Philippines, and made relief of the Philippines the main U.S. objective. —David M. Kennedy, Atlantic, March 1999 The President had largely stuck to his publicly stated goals—though the objective of smashing Iraq's military machine hadn't been so clear. —Elizabeth Drew, New Yorker, 6 May 1991 … their primary objective is not the enrollment of new voters but changing the party affiliation of old voters … —Lawrence King, Commonweal, 9 Oct. 1970 The main objective of the class is to teach basic typing skills. She's expanding the business with the objective of improving efficiency. We've set specific objectives for each day.
Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
That should make all Americans suspicious of Kavanaugh’s ability to be objective in any question involving Trump and the Mueller investigation. — Dan Rodricks, baltimoresun.com, "Is Kavanaugh Trump's 'Get-Out-of-Jail-Free Card'?," 10 July 2018 Text and drawing together take us to the dawn of ornithology—that is to say, to the first efforts to collect objective information about birds. — Simon Barnes, WSJ, "‘Pasta for Nightingales’ Review: Birdwatching Tips From the Renaissance," 13 Apr. 2018 Zimmermann and cinematographer Gerald Kerkletz, most famous for his work on Cannes competition title Michael from Markus Schleinzer, enforce their rigid formal choice throughout, which imparts a sense of detached and almost objective calmness. — Boyd Van Hoeij, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Walden': Film Review | Karlovy Vary 2018," 12 July 2018 From an objective view, your parents’ wills could be unfair and even mean-spirited. — Michelle Singletary, BostonGlobe.com, "What do your parents owe you when they die?," 6 July 2018 The injunction orders immigration agents to: -Stop separating parents and children without an objective finding that a parent is unfit. — Chuck Todd, NBC News, "Progressives' big night: Five takeaways from Tuesday's primaries," 27 June 2018 Arcidiacono shows that, after narrowing down applicants to those with the strongest objective academic qualifications, Asian Americans were far more likely than blacks or Hispanics to receive a low personality score from admissions officers. — Alia Wong, The Atlantic, "Harvard's Impossible Personality Test," 19 June 2018 Copyright aside, the hijacking of the process raises fundamental questions about how incumbent platforms and supposedly objective operators abuse their position. — David Meyer, Fortune, "Not So Fast: Europe's Controversial New Copyright Law Was Just Held Up After an Intense Lobbying War," 5 July 2018 So if a patient 65 or older comes in with complaints of memory issues, the physicians can run the test and then will have an objective medical observation to refer the patient for a dementia exam. — Hanaa’ Tameez And Rodger Mallison, star-telegram, "Mexican-Americans show signs of Alzheimer's 10 years earlier than others, study says," 19 June 2018Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
But the president has never specified his objective. — Martin Feldstein, WSJ, "The Use—and Abuse—of Tariffs," 5 July 2018 When people talk about supporting unions as a policy goal for the left, their objectives are often curbing inequality and boosting wages. — Livia Gershon, Longreads, "Nurses, Unite!," 28 June 2018 The work of those who report to you must support your objectives. — Linda Clark-santos, idahostatesman, "Want to be successful? Manage up, down, across and out!," 20 June 2018 Also, get clear on your more general financial objectives. — Charlotte Cowles, The Cut, "How Can I Shop a Sale Without Losing My Head?," 18 May 2018 For armchair generals like Bolton who dream of Tehran in flames, an Israel-Iran war might have some appeal as another way to achieve their objective without the pesky need of selling the American people on yet another open-ended war. — Jonah Shepp, Daily Intelligencer, "Trump’s Iran Deal Exit Has Raised the Risk of War, Even Faster Than Expected," 11 May 2018 Harris Health's second annual INSPIRE Nursing Symposium, which was held in April, focused on numerous objectives. — Houston Chronicle, "Diamond Sponsor: Harris Health System gets 'INSPIREd'," 30 Apr. 2018 President Trump hailed the strike as successfully meeting its objectives via Twitter. — Sean Gallagher, Ars Technica, "What the latest strike on Syria succeeded at (and what it didn’t)," 18 Apr. 2018 In our objective, completely unbiased opinion, peanut butter and chocolate is the world’s best combo. — Blake Bakkila, Health.com, "13 Overnight Oats Recipes to Meal Prep Like a Pinterest Pro," 23 Mar. 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'objective.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for objective
objective
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of objective
(Entry 1 of 2)
: based on facts rather than feelings or opinions : not influenced by feelings
philosophy : existing outside of the mind : existing in the real world
grammar : relating to nouns, noun phrases, or pronouns that are the objects of verbs or prepositions
objective
noun
English Language Learners Definition of objective (Entry 2 of 2)
: something you are trying to do or achieve : a goal or purpose
See the full definition for objective in the English Language Learners Dictionary
objective
adjective
\
Kids Definition of objective
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : dealing with facts without allowing personal feelings to confuse them an objective report
2 : being or belonging to the case of a noun or pronoun that is an object of a transitive verb or a preposition
3 : being outside of the mind and independent of it
objective
nounKids Definition of objective (Entry 2 of 2)
objective
adjective
\
Medical Definition of objective
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : of, relating to, or being an object, phenomenon, or condition in the realm of sensible experience independent of individual thought and perceptible by all observers objective reality
2 : perceptible to persons other than the affected individual an objective symptom of disease — compare subjective sense 2b
objective
nounMedical Definition of objective (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : a lens or system of lenses that forms an image of an object
2 : something toward which effort is directed
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