Standard Lemma guide

corrective

adj · noun · 7 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /kəˈɹɛktɪv/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australian: /kəˈɹektɪv/
  • rhymes with -ɛktɪv
  • CMU ARPABET: K ER0 EH1 K T IH0 V Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Of or pertaining to correction; serving to correct.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable

Examples

  • As the currents were changing rapidly, the captain had to make many corrective course changes.
  • Since the accident I've had to wear a corrective brace.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Qualifying; limiting.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: not-comparable, obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

Something that corrects or counteracts something.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • alkalies are correctives of acids
  • penalties are correctives of immoral conduct
  • 1605, Francis Bacon, Of the proficience and aduancement of learning diuine, and humane in The Twoo Bookes of Francis Bacon, London: Henrie Tomes, pp. 4b-5, If then such be the capacitie and receit of the mind of Man, it is manifest, that there is no daunger at all in the proportion or quantitie of knowledge howe large soeuer; least it should make it swell or outcompasse it selfe; no, but it is meerely the qualitie of knowledge, which be it in quantitie more or lesse, if it bee taken without the true correctiue thereof, hath in it some Nature of venome or malignitie, and some effects of that venome which is ventositie or swelling.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

4

noun

Meaning 4

Limitation; restriction.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: obsolete

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

5

adjective satellite

Meaning 5

tending or intended to correct or counteract or restore to a normal condition

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • corrective measures
  • corrective lenses

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

6

adjective satellite

Meaning 6

designed to promote discipline

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the teacher's action was corrective rather than instructional
  • disciplinal measures
  • the mother was stern and disciplinary

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: disciplinary, disciplinal

Antonyms: none provided

7

noun

Meaning 7

a device for treating injury or disease

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: restorative

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: device

Narrower terms: pack, face pack, pickup, pick-me-up, prosthesis, prosthetic device

History

Etymology

Borrowed from French correctif, equivalent to correct + -ive.

Across languages

Translations

13 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: изправителен (izpravitelen) — pertaining to correction
  • Catalan: correctiu — pertaining to correction
  • Esperanto: korekta — pertaining to correction
  • French: correcteur — pertaining to correction
  • Galician: correctivo — pertaining to correction
  • Hungarian: javító — pertaining to correction
  • Hungarian: korrigáló — pertaining to correction
  • Indonesian: korektif — pertaining to correction
  • Portuguese: corretivo — pertaining to correction
  • Portuguese: corretor — pertaining to correction
  • Spanish: correctivo — pertaining to correction
  • Ukrainian: виправни́й (vypravnýj) — pertaining to correction
  • Ukrainian: поправни́й (popravnýj) — pertaining to correction
Real reading context

corrective in complete knowledge articles

Midnight Mass (short story collection) Literature & books · Challenging · 1 uses