Definitively

How to spell definitively

12 letters · 5 syllables

How to pronounce definitively

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does definitively mean?

1. adverbIn a way that is final, conclusive, and beyond further dispute.

Definitively in a sentence

• The lab results definitively confirmed the source of the contamination.

• The contract definitively settles who owns the rights to the design.

Where does definitively come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin verb definire, meaning 'to set a limit to' or 'to mark out the boundaries of', which was built from de- ('completely') and finis ('an end, a boundary'). From definire came the adjective definitivus, describing something fixed, settled, and beyond further dispute. The word travelled into English through Old French during the late Middle Ages, first as 'definitive' for a final, conclusive ruling, and the adverb 'definitively' followed to describe doing something in a way that settles a matter for good. The same finis root sits inside the everyday words 'finish', 'finite', and 'final', all carrying that sense of an ending. The spelling trap lies in the unstressed middle: writers often lose track of the second 'i' in the -nit- string and the soft 'tiv' that follows, so it pays to remember the visible 'finit' core, the same letters as in 'finite'.

How the word is built

• de- (completely)
• fin (from Latin finis: end, boundary)
• -itive (adjective suffix)
• -ly (adverb suffix)