invasive
Pronunciation
  • IPA: /ɪnˈveɪsɪv/
Adjective

invasive

  1. That invades a foreign country using military force.
  2. Relating to military aggression generally.
    • mid 1590s, William Shakespeare, King John, Act V, sc. 1:
      Oh inglorious league : / Shall we vpon the footing of our land, / Send fayre-play-orders, and make comprimiſe, / Inſinuation, parley, and baſe truce / To Armes Inuaſiue ?
  3. (of a plant or animal) That grows in environments which do not harbor natural enemies, often to the detriment of native species or of food or garden flora and fauna.
    an invasive species
  4. (medicine) (of a carcinoma etc) That invades healthy tissue; (of a procedure) in which part of the body is entered
  5. Intrusive on one's privacy.
  6. Coming from outside; originating externally.
    • 1902, William James, The Varieties of Religious Experience, Lectures 4 & 5:
      All invasive moral states and passionate enthusiasms make one feelingless to evil in some direction.
Translations
  • French: d'invasion
  • Italian: di invasione
Translations Translations Translations Noun

invasive (plural invasives)

  1. An invasive organism, as, a plant or animal.
    • 2005, Barbara J. Euser, Bay Area Gardening: 64 Practical Essays by Master Gardeners, Travelers' Tales (ISBN 9781932361308), page 174
      There is never a time to plant exotic, that is non-native, invasives. Exotic invasives such as pampas grass and French and Scottish broom were sold by local nurseries in the past, before their destructive nature was understood.



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