different between dextrous vs active

English

Etymology

See dexterous.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -?kst??s

Adjective

dextrous (comparative more dextrous, superlative most dextrous)

1. (chiefly Britain) Alternative spelling of dexterous.
   • 1754, Sarah Fielding, Jane Collier, The Cry: A New Dramatic Fable, Volume 1, page 189,

     The man, who with his right hand (or indeed with either, hand that by habit is the mo?t dextrous) endeavours to help and a??i?t another, exerts his whole ?trength, and is generally enabled to compa?s his friendly de?ign; or if a blow is nece??ary to be given, the dextrous hand hits the desired mark, and gives ju?t the force de?igned; whereas a blow given through pa??ion, with the aukwardne?s of a weak-handed ?troke, may beat out an eye, flatten a no?e, or indeed aiming at an enemy may ?ometimes hit a friend.

   • 1788, Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Volume 5, page 471,

     Yet the ?ubjects of the Byzantine empire were ?till the mo?t dextrous and diligent of nations;

   • 1979, Donald E. Worcester, The Apaches: Eagles of the Southwest, University of Oklahoma Press, page 53,

     " […] She was renowned as one of the most dextrous horse thieves and horse breakers in the tribe, and seldom permitted an expedition to go on a raid without her presence. The translation of her Apache title was ‘Dextrous Horse Thief’."

   • 1992, Richard A. Gabriel, The Culture of War: Invention and Early Development, Greenwood Publishing Group, page 1,

     Its fingers are longer, more flexible, and more dextrous than those of monkeys and can be moved individually.

English

Etymology

From Middle English actyf, from Old French actif, from Latin activus, from agere (“to do, to act”); see act.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?æk.t?v/
• Rhymes: -ækt?v

Adjective

active (comparative more active, superlative most active)

1. Having the power or quality of acting; causing change; communicating action or motion; acting;—opposed to passive, that receives.

   Synonym: acting

   Antonym: passive

2. Quick in physical movement; of an agile and vigorous body; nimble.

   Synonyms: agile, nimble

   Antonyms: passive, indolent, still

3. In action; actually proceeding; working; in force

   Synonyms: in action, working, in force

   Antonyms: quiescent, dormant, extinct

   1. (specifically, of certain geological features, such as volcano, geysers, etc) Emitting hot materials, such as lava, smoke, or steam, or producing tremors.
4. Given to action; constantly engaged in action; energetic; diligent; busy

   • This new-comer was a man who in any company would have seemed striking. […] He was smooth-faced, and his fresh skin and well-developed figure bespoke the man in good physical condition through active exercise, yet well content with the world's apportionment.

   Synonyms: busy, deedful, diligent, energetic

   Antonyms: dull, sluggish, indolent, inert

5. Requiring or implying action or exertion

   Synonym: operative

   Antonyms: passive, tranquil, sedentary

6. Given to action rather than contemplation; practical; operative

   Antonyms: theoretical, speculative

7. Brisk; lively.

8. Implying or producing rapid action.

   Antonyms: passive, slow

9. (heading, grammar) About verbs.
   1. Applied to a form of the verb; — opposed to passive. See active voice.
   2. Applied to verbs which assert that the subject acts upon or affects something else; transitive.
   3. Applied to all verbs that express action as distinct from mere existence or state.
10. (computing, of source code) Eligible to be processed by a compiler or interpreter.
11. (electronics) Not passive.
12. (gay sexual slang) (of a homosexual man) enjoying a role in anal sex in which he penetrates, rather than being penetrated by his partner.

    Synonym: top

    Antonyms: passive, bottom

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:active

Derived terms

Related terms

• act

Translations

See also

• versatile (in relation to sense 10)

Noun

active (plural actives)

1. A person or thing that is acting or capable of acting.
   • 1989, The Alcalde (volume 78, number 2, page 11)

     "Alumni could become more active in giving guidance and leadership to students. They act as sort of a 'maturity governor' on fraternities," notes Ratliff, citing surveys suggesting that fraternity actives presume mistakenly that alumni want hazing […]

2. (electronics) Any component that is not passive. See Passivity (engineering).
   • 2013, David Manners, Hitchhikers' Guide to Electronics in the '90s (page 36)

     Components are split into two broad segments: actives and passives. Active components like the vacuum tube and the transistor contain the power to generate and alter electrical signals.

Further reading

• active in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• active in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• Cavite

Asturian

Verb

active

1. first-person singular present subjunctive of activar
2. third-person singular present subjunctive of activar

French

Adjective

active

1. feminine singular of actif

Verb

active

1. first-person singular present indicative of activer
2. third-person singular present indicative of activer
3. first-person singular present subjunctive of activer
4. third-person singular present subjunctive of activer
5. second-person singular imperative of activer

Anagrams

• cavité

German

Alternative forms

• aktive

Etymology 1

Borrowed from Latin ?ct?v?.

Adverb

active

1. (grammar, obsolete) actively

Etymology 2

Adjective

active

1. inflection of activ:
   1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
   2. strong nominative/accusative plural
   3. weak nominative all-gender singular
   4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular

Interlingua

Adjective

active (not comparable)

1. active

Related terms

• action
• activitate

Latin

Etymology 1

Adverb

?ct?v? (comparative ?ct?vius, superlative ?ct?vissim?)

1. (grammar) actively

Etymology 2

Adjective

?ct?ve

1. vocative masculine singular of ?ct?vus

References

• active in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• active in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré Latin-Français, Hachette
• Carl Meissner; Henry William Auden (1894) Latin Phrase-Book?^[2], London: Macmillan and Co.

Middle English

Adjective

active

1. Alternative form of actyf

Noun

active

1. Alternative form of actyf

Portuguese

Verb

active

1. first-person singular (eu) present subjunctive of activar
2. third-person singular (ele and ela, also used with você and others) present subjunctive of activar
3. third-person singular (você) affirmative imperative of activar
4. third-person singular (você) negative imperative of activar

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ak?ti.ve]

Adjective

active

1. nominative feminine plural of activ
2. accusative feminine plural of activ
3. nominative neuter plural of activ
4. accusative neuter plural of activ

Spanish

Verb

active

1. First-person singular (yo) present subjunctive form of activar.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present subjunctive form of activar.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present subjunctive form of activar.