Constructive

How to spell constructive

12 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce constructive

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does constructive mean?

1. adjectiveServing to improve or build something up, especially advice or criticism intended to be helpful.

Constructive in a sentence

• Her manager offered constructive feedback on the draft report.

• The two teams held a constructive discussion about the merger.

Where does constructive come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word is built on the Latin verb struere, which literally meant 'to pile up' or 'to build', and from it Romans formed structus, the past participle behind English words like 'structure' and 'instruct'. The prefix con- adds the sense of 'together', so constructus described things built up or assembled, and the Late Latin constructivus meant 'tending to build'. English took the adjective in during the seventeenth century, at first in legal and architectural senses, before it broadened to its modern figurative meaning of feedback or criticism that helps build something better rather than tear it down. The same struere root quietly survives in 'construct', 'destruction', and even 'industry'. Remembering that the middle holds 'struct', the genuine building block, keeps the spelling on track.

How the word is built

• con- (together)
• struct (from struere: to build, pile up)
• -ive (tending to)