active
Pronunciation
  • IPA: /ˈæk.tɪv/
Adjective

active

  1. Having the power or quality of acting; causing change; communicating action or motion; acting;—opposed to passive, that receives.
    certain active principles
    the active powers of the mind
    Synonyms: acting
    Antonyms: passive
  2. Quick in physical movement; of an agile and vigorous body; nimble.
    an active child or animal
    Synonyms: agile, nimble
    Antonyms: passive, indolent, still
  3. In action; actually proceeding; working; in force
    active laws
    active hostilities
    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
    an active man of business
    active mind
    active zeal
    • 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, OCLC 639762314 ↗, page 0108 ↗:
      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
    active employment or service
    active scenes
    Synonyms: operative
    Antonyms: passive, tranquil, sedentary
  6. Given to action rather than contemplation; practical; operative
    an active rather than a speculative statesman
    Antonyms: theoretical, speculative
  7. Brisk; lively.
    an active demand for corn
  8. Implying or producing rapid action.
    an active disease
    an active remedy
    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.
    Synonyms: top
    Antonyms: passive, bottom
Synonyms Related terms Translations Translations Translations Translations Translations
  • Russian: акти́вный
Translations
  • German: rührig
  • Russian: де́ятельный
Translations
  • Portuguese: ativo
  • Russian: энерги́чный
Translations Noun

active (plural actives)

  1. A person or thing that is acting or capable of acting.
  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.



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