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Added 9 October 2026

relative

/ˈɹɛl.ə.tɪv/ noun

In Latin: relātīvus Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about relative at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A person related by blood or marriage.
police are searching for relatives of the deceased
An animal or plant that bears a relationship to another (as related by common descent or by membership in the same genus).

adjective

Estimated by comparison; not absolute or complete.
a relative stranger
Properly related in size or degree or other measurable characteristics; usually followed by `to'.
the punishment ought to be proportional to the crime

Origin

From Middle French relatif, from Late Latin relātīvus, from Latin relātus, perfect passive participle of referō (“to carry back, to ascribe”), from re- (“again”) + ferō (“to bear or carry”). By surface analysis, relate + -ive.

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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