# intensive

> English word · Adjective · IPA /ɪnˈtɛnsɪv/ · frequency rank #6,485

## Definitions
1. Done with intensity or to a great degree; thorough.
2. Being made more intense.
3. Making something more intense; intensifying.
4. Making something more intense; intensifying.
5. Involving much activity in a short period of time; highly concentrated.
6. Of or pertaining to innate or internal intensity or strength rather than outward extent.
7. Chiefly suffixed to a noun: using something with intensity; requiring a great amount of something; demanding.
8. Chiefly suffixed to a noun: using something with intensity; requiring a great amount of something; demanding.
9. That can be intensified; allowing an increase of degree.
10. Synonym of intense (“extreme or very high or strong in degree; of feelings, thoughts, etc.: strongly focused”).

## Etymology
The adjective is derived from Late Middle English intensive (“fervent, great, intense”), borrowed from Old French intensif, intensive (modern French intensif) + Middle English -ive (suffix meaning ‘of the nature of, relating to’ forming adjectives), equivalent to intense + -ive. Intensif is from Medieval Latin intēnsīvus, from Latin intēnsus (“attentive; eager, intent; intensive”) + -īvus (suffix forming adjectives with the sense ‘doing; related to doing’); and intēnsus is the perfect passive participle of intendō (“to stretch out, strain”), from in- (prefix meaning ‘to, towards’) + tendō (“to extend, stretch, stretch out”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tend- (“to extend, stretch”)). Doublet of intend.
The noun is derived from the adjective.

## Easily confused with
- **intrusive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intensive-vs-intrusive)
- **inventive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intensive-vs-inventive)
- **intensively** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intensive-vs-intensively)
- **intense** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intense-vs-intensive)
- **intensity** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intensity-vs-intensive)
- **incentive** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/incentive-vs-intensive)
- **intensify** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/intensify-vs-intensive)

## Common misspellings (13)
`inetnsive`, `inntensive`, `intenisve`, `intennsive`, `intensiev`, `intensivve`, `intenssive`, `intensvie`, `intesnive`, `intnesive`, `inttensive`, `itnensive`, `nitensive`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/intensive