partitive
/ˈpɑː.tə.tɪv/adjective, noun
partitive is spelled P-A-R-T-I-T-I-V-E: 9 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 22 million words in written English, the 143,405th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, partitive means “That divides something into parts” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in partitive?
| Letters | 9: P-A-R-T-I-T-I-V-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 22 million words; the 143,405th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is partitive?
Partitive appears about once in every 22 million words in written English, the 143,405th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce partitive?
- UK /ˈpɑː.tə.tɪv/
Partitive has 3 syllables (counted from the pronunciation).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-partitive.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of partitive
- more partitive comparative
- most partitive superlative
- partitives plural
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does partitive mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
That divides something into parts.
partitive tendencies in education
- 2
Indicating a part rather than the whole of something.
The word some is used in partitive constructions.
noun
- 1
A partitive word, phrase or case.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Partitive in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | partitif |
| German | partitiv , Partitiv |
| Portuguese | partitivo |
| Spanish | partitivo , caso partitivo |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does partitive come from?
Inherited from Middle English partitif, borrowed from Medieval Latin partītīvus, from Latin partītus + -īvus.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).