retentive
/ɹɪˈtɛntɪv/adjective
retentive is spelled R-E-T-E-N-T-I-V-E: 9 letters. It appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 73,203rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, retentive means “Having power to retain” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in retentive?
| Letters | 9: R-E-T-E-N-T-I-V-E |
|---|---|
| In writing | about once in every 6 million words; the 73,203rd 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 retentive?
Retentive appears about once in every 6 million words in written English, the 73,203rd 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 retentive?
- /ɹɪˈtɛntɪv/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-retentive.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of retentive
- more retentive comparative
- most retentive superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does retentive mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Having power to retain.
a soil that is highly retentive of rainwater
- 2
slangAnal-retentive.
noun
- 1
obsoleteThat which retains or confines; a restraint.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does retentive come from?
Borrowed from Middle French rétentif, from Old French retentif, from Medieval Latin retentivus, from Latin retentus.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).