passive

noun

(marketing) A customer who is satisfied with a product or service, but not keen enough to promote it by word of mouth.

(grammar) The passive voice of verbs.

(grammar) A form of a verb that is in the passive voice.

(electronics) Any component that consumes but does not produce energy, or is incapable of power gain.

A thing whose worth decreases with time.

(gaming) Ellipsis of passive attack. [(cryptography) An attack in which the cryptanalyst cannot interact with any of the parties involved, attempting to break the system solely based upon observed data such as ciphertext.]

adjective

Being subjected to an action without producing a reaction.

Taking no action.

(grammar) Being in the passive voice.

(psychology) Being inactive and submissive in a relationship, especially in a sexual one.

(finance) Not participating in management.

(electronics) Of a component: that consumes but does not produce energy, or is incapable of power gain.

(aviation) Without motive power.

(in "passive provision") Where allowance is made for a possible future event.

Roots

patiorpass- · Latin · suffer, endure

Synonyms for passive

inactiveadj unresistingadj activeadj quiescentadj abeyantadj unassertiveadj supineadj submissiveadj inertadj apatheticadj acquiescentadj impassiveadj

Synonyms & related words for passive

Find synonyms, related words, and the definition of passive — including inactive, unresisting, active, quiescent, abeyant, unassertive. Dendril is a free visual thesaurus that shows them on an interactive map where stronger matches sit closer to the center — no signup, no ads.

Words related to passive

Explore words related to passive — words associated with it, words that go with it, and its nearest matches in meaning. Related words include passivized, passivization, passivism, passively, passiveness, passivity, nonactive, inactively. Click any word to make it the center of the map and keep exploring the web of connections.

Synonyms for passive

Common synonyms for passive include inactive, unresisting, active, quiescent, abeyant, unassertive, supine, submissive — words that share a close meaning. Hover or tap any word on the map for its definition and part of speech.

Where does passive come from?

The word passive breaks down into one root of Latin origin: the root pass-, from Latin patior (“suffer, endure”). Explore each root to see other English words built from the same source.