Need another word that means the same as “passive”? Find 25 synonyms and 30 related words for “passive” in this overview.
Table Of Contents:
- Passive as a Noun
- Definitions of "Passive" as a noun
- Synonyms of "Passive" as a noun (1 Word)
- Usage Examples of "Passive" as a noun
- Passive as an Adjective
- Definitions of "Passive" as an adjective
- Synonyms of "Passive" as an adjective (24 Words)
- Usage Examples of "Passive" as an adjective
- Associations of "Passive" (30 Words)
The synonyms of “Passive” are: inactive, peaceful, submissive, acquiescent, unresisting, yielding, unassertive, compliant, complaisant, pliant, resigned, obedient, docile, tractable, malleable, pliable, meek, subdued, deferential, forbearing, long-suffering, patient, lamblike, supine, passive voice
Passive as a Noun
Definitions of "Passive" as a noun
According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “passive” as a noun can have the following definitions:
- A passive form of a verb.
- The passive voice.
- The voice used to indicate that the grammatical subject of the verb is the recipient (not the source) of the action denoted by the verb.
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Synonyms of "Passive" as a noun (1 Word)
passive voice | The voice used to indicate that the grammatical subject of the verb is the recipient (not the source) of the action denoted by the verb. |
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Usage Examples of "Passive" as a noun
- `The ball was thrown by the boy' uses the passive voice.
- `The ball was thrown' is an abbreviated passive.
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Passive as an Adjective
Definitions of "Passive" as an adjective
According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “passive” as an adjective can have the following definitions:
- Lacking in energy or will- George Meredith.
- Accepting or allowing what happens or what others do, without active response or resistance.
- (of radar or a satellite) receiving or reflecting radiation from a transmitter or target rather than generating its own signal.
- (of a heating system) making use of incident sunlight as an energy source.
- Expressing that the subject of the sentence is the patient of the action denoted by the verb.
- (of a circuit or device) containing no source of electromotive force.
- Peacefully resistant in response to injustice.
- Lacking in energy or will.
- Denoting a voice of verbs in which the subject undergoes the action of the verb (e.g. they were killed as opposed to the active form he killed them).
- (of a metal) made unreactive by a thin inert surface layer of oxide.
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Synonyms of "Passive" as an adjective (24 Words)
acquiescent | Ready to accept something without protest, or to do what someone else wants. His acquiescent mood. |
complaisant | Willing to please others or to accept what they do or say without protest. To close one s eyes like a complaisant husband whose wife has taken a lover. |
compliant | Inclined to comply. The conversion of the gel to a much less compliant rigid glass. |
deferential | Showing deference. People were always deferential to him. |
docile | Easily handled or managed. Docile pupils eager for instruction. |
forbearing | Showing patient and unruffled self-control and restraint under adversity; slow to retaliate or express resentment. Seemly and forbearing yet strong enough to resist aggression. |
inactive | Not in physical motion. Inactive machinery. |
lamblike | Like a lamb in meekness and gentleness. |
long-suffering | Patiently bearing continual wrongs or trouble. |
malleable | Easily influenced; pliable. Malleable metals such as gold. |
meek | Evidencing little spirit or courage; overly submissive or compliant- Orville Prescott. Meek as a mouse. |
obedient | Complying or willing to comply with an order or request; submissive to another’s authority. A docile and obedient dog. |
patient | Enduring trying circumstances with even temper or characterized by such endurance. A patient smile. |
peaceful | Peacefully resistant in response to injustice. Everything was so quiet and peaceful in the early morning. |
pliable | Susceptible to being led or directed. Pliable teenage minds. |
pliant | Capable of being bent or flexed or twisted without breaking. Pliant willow stems. |
resigned | Having accepted something unpleasant that one cannot do anything about. My response is a resigned shrug of the shoulders. |
subdued | (of a person or their manner) quiet and rather reflective or depressed. A subdued whisper. |
submissive | Abjectly submissive characteristic of a slave or servant. Replacing troublemakers with more submissive people. |
supine | Passive as a result of indolence or indifference. The government was supine in the face of racial injustice. |
tractable | Readily reacting to suggestions and influences. The natives being of an intelligent tractable disposition. |
unassertive | Inclined to timidity or lack of self-confidence. A shy unassertive person. |
unresisting | Offering no resistance. She took the box from his unresisting hand. |
yielding | Tending to give in or surrender or agree. A deep yielding layer of foam rubber. |
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Usage Examples of "Passive" as an adjective
- A passive optical network is to be installed in 2000 homes.
- The women were portrayed as passive victims.
- Passive sensors detect the emissions from enemy radar.
- Passive resistance.
- Much benevolence of the passive order may be traced to a disinclination to inflict pain upon oneself.
- Academics seem to favor passive sentences.
- Bananas can be grown at the highest altitude using passive solar heating alone.
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Associations of "Passive" (30 Words)
acquiescence | The reluctant acceptance of something without protest. In silent acquiescence she rose to her feet. |
bashful | Disposed to avoid notice blate is a Scottish term for bashful. Don t be bashful about telling folk how you feel. |
coy | Showing marked and often playful or irritating evasiveness or reluctance to make a definite or committing statement. Like a wild young colt very inquisitive but very coy and not to be easily cajoled. |
demure | Reserved, modest, and shy (typically used of a woman. A demure knee length skirt. |
diffident | Lacking self-confidence. A diffident youth. |
disinclined | Unwilling because of mild dislike or disapproval. The rural community was disinclined to abandon the old ways. |
eschew | Deliberately avoid using; abstain from. He appealed to the crowd to eschew violence. |
inactive | (of e.g. volcanos) not erupting and not extinct. Inactive Crohn s disease. |
introvert | (psychology) a person who tends to shrink from social contacts and to become preoccupied with their own thoughts. He introverted his feelings. |
introverted | (of an organ or other body part) turned or pushed inward on itself. |
loath | (usually followed by `to’) strongly opposed. Loath to admit a mistake. |
negatively | In a negative way. Traffic congestion had impacted negatively on their business. |
passivity | The trait of remaining inactive; a lack of initiative. Nickel increases the overall passivity of the iron. |
prissy | Excessively fastidious and easily disgusted. A middle class family with two prissy children. |
prudish | Exaggeratedly proper. The prudish moral climate of the late 19th century. |
quiet | With little or no activity or no agitation quiet is a nonstandard variant for quietly. We wanted a quiet wedding. |
reserved | Kept specially for a particular person. Was habitually reserved in speech withholding her opinion. |
reticent | Not revealing one’s thoughts or feelings readily. She was extremely reticent about her personal affairs. |
retired | (of a place) quiet and secluded. A retired headmaster. |
retiring | Of a person who has held and relinquished a position or office. A retiring member of the board. |
shy | Slow or reluctant to do (something. The wealthy have become less shy of displaying their privilege. |
silence | Stop or suppress (a sound or noise); cause to become silent. An eerie silence descended over the house. |
silent | Implied by or inferred from actions or statements. A silent prayer. |
taciturn | Habitually reserved and uncommunicative. After such gatherings she would be taciturn and morose. |
timid | Showing fear and lack of confidence. I was too timid to ask for what I wanted. |
timorous | Timid by nature or revealing timidity. A timorous voice. |
unassertive | (of a person) not having or showing a confident and forceful personality. His bland and unassertive personal style. |
uncommunicative | Unwilling to talk or impart information. He had always been quiet and uncommunicative having few friends. |
withdrawn | Withdrawn from society seeking solitude. When her husband died she became very withdrawn. |
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