as in withdrawn
not comfortable around people
a recessive genius who was most comfortable working alone in his chemistry lab
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Recent Examples of recessive
His presence is so recessive that the resulting footage, however cannily composed, looks, for the most part, like it was made by an unattended surveillance camera.
—
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2026
White tigers are the result of inbreeding to preserve a rare recessive gene.
—Quinn Clark, jsonline.com, 27 Oct. 2025
As leaders go, Dynevor (Bridgerton) is recessive and inscrutable, at least in the family get-togethers that form the narrative.
—Sheri Linden, HollywoodReporter, 27 Oct. 2025
Further examinations revealed that the golden retriever TNNI3 mutation is autosomal recessive.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for recessive
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2026
White tigers are the result of inbreeding to preserve a rare recessive gene.
—Quinn Clark, jsonline.com, 27 Oct. 2025
As leaders go, Dynevor (Bridgerton) is recessive and inscrutable, at least in the family get-togethers that form the narrative.
—Sheri Linden, HollywoodReporter, 27 Oct. 2025
Further examinations revealed that the golden retriever TNNI3 mutation is autosomal recessive.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for recessive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for recessive
Adjective
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Patrick Stewart is also among those to have publicly discussed working with a withdrawn Hardy, who has also starred in The Dark Knight trilogy, Peaky Blinders and the Venom films.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
27 May 2026
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Read more on the deadly ripple effects of withdrawn aid.—
Theresa Gaffney,
STAT,
20 May 2026
Adjective
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Petco — Shares of the pet retailer dropped roughly 8% after Petco’s current-quarter forecast came in shy of Wall Street’s expectations.—
Michelle Fox,
CNBC,
4 June 2026
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Though often despised, carp are exceedingly shy and difficult, and great fighters.—
Byron W. Dalrymple,
Outdoor Life,
4 June 2026
Adjective
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The lone exception will be Friday night, when the Royals’ game against the Twins in Minneapolis will only be available for viewing on Apple TV.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
1 June 2026
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Less than 20 years ago, Emmy’s top drama and comedy categories were dominated by the four major broadcast networks and one, lone subscription television service, HBO.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
1 June 2026
Adjective
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This dynamic shows up across leadership styles but more consistently among introverted leaders.—
Bill Koch,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
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The love story — spirited and wrenching — begins with the meet-cute in a Los Angeles high school of introverted skateboarder AJ and gutsy surfer Kristen.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
22 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Recessive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/recessive. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
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