restrictive

adjective re·stric·tive \ ri-ˈstrik-tiv \

|Updated on: 20 Jun 2018

Examples: restrictive in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of restrictive

1 a : of or relating to restriction

b : serving or tending to restrict

restrictive regulations

2 : limiting the reference of a modified word or phrase

3 : prohibiting further negotiation

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restrictive

noun

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restrictively

adverb

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restrictiveness

noun

See restrictive defined for English-language learners

See restrictive defined for kids

Examples of restrictive in a Sentence

In the sentence “The book that you ordered is out of print,” “that you ordered” is a restrictive clause.

Recent Examples of restrictive from the Web

Of 22 sectors measured in 44 countries in the OECD’s Services Trade Restrictiveness Index, America had seven that were more restrictive than average.

— The Economist, "How open is America?," 14 June 2018
The company is more restrictive about who can mine or survey its users.

— Fortune, "If You’re a Facebook User, You’re Also a Research Subject," 14 June 2018
The terms are more restrictive than the loan provided by Japan for a similar wharf.

— ben bohane, New York Times, "South Pacific Nation Shrugs Off Worries on China’s Influence," 13 June 2018
Some of those diets, like the popular ketogenic diet, are also incredibly restrictive, indicating how blurry the line is between pro-ED communities and others that ostensibly don’t violate a site’s rules.

— louise matsakis, WIRED, "How Pro-Eating Disorder Posts Evade Filters on Social Media," 13 June 2018
Compared to the nation's other metropolitan areas, as the Tribune reported last year, Chicago's subway performance policies are very restrictive.

— maya dukmasova, Chicago Reader, "News / Politics / Transportation Singer welcomed by America's Got Talent—but not the CTA," 12 June 2018
The above-ground internment is much less restrictive.

— wesley e. wright, Houston Chronicle, "Burial benefits for veterans explained," 18 May 2018
Cities, including New Orleans, have considered whether to provide tax incentives to get developers interested in building affordable housing, but inclusionary housing policies are more restrictive.

— kevin litten, NOLA.com, "Housing advocate presses governor on inclusionary housing veto," 17 May 2018
Intel's closest equivalent to Ryzen Pro, vPro, is more restrictive: the company doesn't make i3 processors with vPro, for example, thereby depriving cheaper systems of the additional features.

— peter bright, Ars Technica, "GPU-equipped Ryzen Pros give AMD what it needs to conquer the corporate desktop," 14 May 2018

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

Did You Know?

Restrictive covenants (that is, agreements) in real-estate deeds were once used to forbid the buyer from ever selling the property to anyone of another race. These are now illegal, though other kinds of restrictive covenants are very common; in some neighborhoods, they may even tell you what colors you can't paint your house. In grammar, a restrictive clause is one that limits the meaning of something that comes before it. In the sentence "That's the professor who I'm trying to avoid", "who I'm trying to avoid" is a restrictive clause, since it's what identifies the professor. But in the sentence "That's my History professor, who I'm trying to avoid", the same clause is nonrestrictive, since the professor has already been identified as "my History professor". There should always be a comma before a nonrestrictive clause, but not before a restrictive clause.

First Known Use of restrictive

1579

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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RESTRICTIVE Defined for English Language Learners

restrictive

adjective

Definition of restrictive for English Language Learners

: limiting or controlling someone or something
grammar of a word or group of words : giving information about a person or thing that is needed to understand which person or thing is meant