proactive

adjective pro·ac·tive \ (ˌ)prō-ˈak-tiv \

Definition of proactive

:relating to, caused by, or being interference between previous learning and the recall or performance of later learning

proactive inhibition of memory

[²pro- + reactive]

:acting in anticipation of future problems, needs, or changes

—

proactively

adverb

See proactive defined for English-language learners

See proactive defined for kids

Examples of proactive in a Sentence

A survey was given out to customers so that the company could take proactive steps to improve their service.
The city is taking a proactive approach to fighting crime by hiring more police officers.

Recent Examples of proactive from the Web

In the past, Lifebanc representatives were proactive in their approach to reach out to high schools about organ donation lessons.

— jane morice, cleveland.com, "New Ohio law requires organ donation education in schools," 22 Aug. 2017
Which leaves firms that could serve as major choke points to white-supremacist groups’ marketing and funding with a difficult choice to make about how proactive a private company should be in limiting the dissemination of noxious ideology.

— gillian b. white, The Atlantic, "When Should Companies Dump White-Supremacist Customers?," 18 Aug. 2017
Be proactive about finding something else to occupy your mind and body—exercise, piano, cleaning, whatever.

— jay willis, GQ, "Wedding Diet: What to Eat to Look Good as Hell on Your Big Day," 16 July 2017
In taking the time to explain drills, Wakabayashi noticed that her club became a proactive group.

— andrew turner, Daily Pilot, "Daily Pilot Softball Player of the Year: The evolution of Ivy Davis," 8 July 2017
While CNN is at the center of the latest firestorm, experts are adamant about the need to be proactive, rather than reactive, on security as the President escalates a war of words.

— thr staff, The Hollywood Reporter, "What Matters in Hollywood Today," 7 July 2017
Costa Mesa police employed proactive measures leading up to the holiday this year in an effort to quell the use of illegal pyrotechnics in the city.

— hannah fry, Daily Pilot, "In Costa Mesa, police track down illegal fireworks on the Fourth," 5 July 2017
Rather than pulling out of the United Nations, the U.S. has been proactive in its leadership role.

— james jay carafano, Fortune, "Trump’s America Isn’t Any More Independent Than Obama’s," 4 July 2017
Building up staff In an interview Thursday, Joe Sprague, Alaska Air’s senior vice president of external affairs, rejected criticism in the union letter that management has not been proactive in addressing the pilot shortage.

— dominic gates, The Seattle Times, "Horizon Air cutting hundreds of flights this summer due to pilot shortage," 29 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'proactive.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

People who tend to react to a problem only when it's gotten serious could be called reactive people. Until recently, reactive (in this sense) didn't really have an antonym. So proactive was coined to describe the kind of person who's always looking into the future in order to be prepared for anything. A good parent attempts to be proactive on behalf of his or her children, trying to imagine the problems they might be facing in a few months or years. A company's financial officers study the patterns of the company's earnings to make sure it won't risk running short of cash at any point in the next year or two. Proactive has only been around a few decades, and it can still sometimes sound like a fashionable buzzword.