Suffix · forms adjectives
Turns a verb or noun into an adjective showing tendency or capacity: create becomes creative.
Written by Bryan López, English teacher · Updated
The suffix -ive creates adjectives that indicate something "tends to" or "is capable of" performing an action. From "create" you get "creative"; from "act" you get "active"; from "effect" you get "effective". It does not mean the action is always happening — it signals a tendency, capacity or inclination. An active person is someone who tends to be in motion.
This suffix is another gift for Spanish speakers: it almost always corresponds to -ivo in Spanish. creative = creativo active = activo effective = efectivo positive = positivo negative = negativo The vast majority of -ive words have a Spanish -ivo cognate. If you see an unknown -ive word, strip the suffix, think of the root, and try adding -ivo in Spanish. It almost always exists.
The same -ive adjective can also function as a noun in certain contexts. an alternative, an initiative, a representative, an executive. In these cases English reuses the adjective form directly as a noun, with no change. The same pattern exists in Spanish with -ivo/-iva words.
Verbal or nominal root + ive. The root sometimes adjusts slightly for pronunciation.
Many -ive words come directly from Latin, so the root may not be a recognisable English verb (native, primitive, passive). In those cases, the Spanish -ivo/-iva cognate gives you the meaning clue.
-ive/ɪv/ · short 'iv'
Tap the button to hear how the ending sounds. Each word in the table has its own audio.
The suffix is -ive, not -ivy. create → creative.
The -f- doubles in English: effect → effective.
"support" is the verb. To describe an attitude you need the adjective: supportive.
A trick to remember it
If Spanish uses -ivo, English almost always uses -ive: creativo = creative, positivo = positive, activo = active. It is one of the most reliable suffixes for guessing the meaning of an unknown word.
Exercise 1 · Form the word
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
What is the correct adjective form of "attract"?
Exercise 3 · Pick the right one
"positive" and "negative" end in -ive because...
The suffix -ive turns a verb or noun into an adjective showing tendency or capacity: create becomes creative. In Spanish it usually maps to -ivo.
The ending -ive is pronounced /ɪv/ · short 'iv'. For example, "creative".
"create" becomes "creative". It is a typical example of the -ive suffix.
-tion, -ness, -ful, -ly, -able... every ending you need to understand thousands of words at once.