1
as in different
being not of the same kind
she seems to alternate between two distinctive hairstyles
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in distinct
serving to identify as belonging to an individual or group
the distinctive odor of a barnyard
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in distinctness
the quality or state of being different
the pronounced distinctiveness of his style of playing the violin
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of distinctive
Erik Zou, JSTOR Daily, 25 Apr. 2025
They were inspired by treasured calligraphy tools, and each brush features a unique walnut handle with distinctive grain.
—Kiana Murden, Vogue, 25 Apr. 2025
Mineral grains evaporated from the planetary surface, however, can linger long enough to present such a distinctive tail.
—Victoria Corless, Space.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Finally, the dual signatures identify a distinctive point of view that makes Bachardy’s portraits so compelling: His drawings are performances.
—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distinctive
Adjective
Its distinctive leaves consist of small leaflets arranged in rows on each side of the central vein, and its small yellow flowers appear in spherical clusters.
—Erik Zou, JSTOR Daily, 25 Apr. 2025
They were inspired by treasured calligraphy tools, and each brush features a unique walnut handle with distinctive grain.
—Kiana Murden, Vogue, 25 Apr. 2025
Mineral grains evaporated from the planetary surface, however, can linger long enough to present such a distinctive tail.
—Victoria Corless, Space.com, 22 Apr. 2025
Finally, the dual signatures identify a distinctive point of view that makes Bachardy’s portraits so compelling: His drawings are performances.
—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for distinctive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for distinctive
Adjective
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The ability of the government to cross-reference personal information using databases from different agencies is tightly regulated under the US Privacy Act.—
Dell Cameron,
Wired News,
21 Apr. 2025
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There’s plenty of beach to go around in Florida, each with a different appeal.—
Chloe Arrojado,
AFAR Media,
21 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Epic Universe, the $7 billion attraction from Comcast Corp.’s Universal Destinations & Experiences division, offers five distinct lands and opens to the public on May 22.—
Lillian Rizzo,
CNBC,
24 Apr. 2025
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Harvard University’s endowment, worth $53.2 billion at the end of its 2024 fiscal year, for example, consists of roughly 14,600 distinct funds.—
Todd L. Ely,
The Conversation,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The school district is one of the nation’s largest and most ethnically and religiously diverse.—
Maureen Groppe,
USA Today,
21 Apr. 2025
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Some of the biggest opportunities for Fort Worth include growth in population, growing the technology industry, expanding tourism, becoming more inclusive and diverse, protecting the environment, and creating job opportunities.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
20 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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But its assertions are characteristic of the Trump administration’s systemic denial of trans lives, and signal further movement by HHS toward policies that seek to suppress trans identities among young people.—
Samantha Riedel,
Them.,
1 May 2025
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Those individual developments are characteristic of a group that appreciates feedback.—
Patrick Mooney,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Shoppers are not expected to see a difference at the supermarket checkout line since the new law just shifts collection of the revenue.—
Daniel I. Dorfman,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2025
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Ana’s guilt creates a need to iron out differences with her mother and receive her blessing — but that’s not likely.—
Frank Rizzo,
Variety,
28 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
The Crown’s offensive diversity — featuring 10 different goal scorers this season — proved ineffective against New England’s tactical discipline.—
Colin Cerniglia,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Apr. 2025
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Within the first 100 days of his second administration President Donald Trump has been incredibly busy, implementing major changes from enacting tariffs to targeting diversity initiatives.—
Anthony Robledo,
USA Today,
27 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
This means the storm was no longer feeding off ocean waters, and did not have the structural characteristics of a typical hurricane anymore.—
Doyle Rice,
USA Today,
20 Apr. 2025
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In a typical spring, apply the herbicide in early to mid-April.—
Tim Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Even for the big names, the distinction between the pure and the pragmatic holds fast.—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
25 Apr. 2025
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Technical Architecture Supports Continuous Improvement The distinction between NeMo and Nvidia’s Inference Microservices, branded as NIMs, lies in their complementary functions.—
Janakiram MSV,
Forbes.com,
25 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Distinctive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/distinctive. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
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