What does "intensive" mean?
A thing which makes something more intense; specifically (linguistics), a form of a word with a more forceful or stronger sense than the root on which it is built.
Intensive
/ɪnˈtɛnsɪv/ adj, noun
adj, noun ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A thing which makes something more intense; specifically (linguistics), a form of a word with a more forceful or stronger sense than the root on which it is built.
- Grammar: intensive is listed as adj, noun.
- Nearest alternatives: absolute, acute, all embracing, all out.
- Useful contrasts: extensive, extensive curriculum, lengthy.
- Usage evidence: The intensive course did wonders for my French.
How to use "intensive"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "intensive" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "intensive" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "intensive" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "intensive" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "intensive" is acting as adj, noun in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "absolute" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "intensive", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A thing which makes something more intense; specifically (linguistics), a form of a word with a more forceful or stronger sense than the root on which it is built.
- 2 a modifier that has little meaning except to intensify the meaning it modifies wordnet
- 3 A course taught intensively, involving much activity in a short period of time.
"Beginning in 2014, ETSI [the Emory-Tibet Science Initiative] embarked on a six-year implementation phase at three monastic universities (Sera, Ganden, and Drepung). This program is composed of summer intensives taught by faculty from Emory and other institutions, year-round study led by on-site instructors, translation and production of bilingual textbooks and instructional videos, and further curriculum refinement."
Adjective
- 1 Done with intensity or to a great degree; thorough.
"Secondly, I continue to base my concepts on intensive study of a limited suite of collections, rather than superficial study of every packet that comes to hand."
- 2 Being made more intense.
- 3 Making something more intense; intensifying.; Of agriculture: increasing the productivity of an area of land.
- 4 Making something more intense; intensifying.; Of a word: serving to give emphasis or force.
"an intensive verb or preposition"
- 5 Involving much activity in a short period of time; highly concentrated.
"I took a three-day intensive course in finance."
Show 5 more definitions
- 6 Of or pertaining to innate or internal intensity or strength rather than outward extent.
- 7 Chiefly suffixed to a noun: using something with intensity; requiring a great amount of something; demanding.
"This job is difficult because it is so labour-intensive."
- 8 Chiefly suffixed to a noun: using something with intensity; requiring a great amount of something; demanding.; Chiefly in intensive care: of care or treatment: involving a great degree of life support, monitoring, and other forms of effort in order to manage life-threatening conditions.
"She was moved to the intensive-care unit of the hospital."
- 9 That can be intensified; allowing an increase of degree. obsolete
"As his [God's] Perfection is infinitely greater than the perfection of a Man, ſo it is infinitely greater than the perfection of an Angel; and vvere it not infinitely greater than the perfection of an Angel, it could not be infinitely greater than the perfection of a Man, becauſe the intenſive diſtance betvveen the perfection of an Angel and of a Man is but finite: […]"
- 10 Synonym of intense (“extreme or very high or strong in degree; of feelings, thoughts, etc.: strongly focused”). obsolete
"Faſcination is the povver and act of Imagination, intenſiue vpon other bodies, than the bodie of the Imaginant; […]"
Adjective
- 1 characterized by a high degree or intensity; often used as a combining form wordnet
- 2 of agriculture; intended to increase productivity of a fixed area by expending more capital and labor wordnet
- 3 tending to give force or emphasis wordnet
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"The intensive course did wonders for my French."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "intensive"?
Common synonyms include: absolute, acute, all embracing, all out, all pervading, all-embracing.
How do you use "intensive" in a sentence?
The intensive course did wonders for my French.
How do you pronounce "intensive"?
Pronounced /ɪnˈtɛnsɪv/.
Etymology
The adjective is derived from Late Middle English intensive (“fervent, great, intense”), borrowed from Old French intensif, intensive (modern French intensif) + Middle English -ive (suffix meaning ‘of the nature of, relating to’ forming adjectives), equivalent to intense + -ive. Intensif is from Medieval Latin intēnsīvus, from Latin intēnsus (“attentive; eager, intent; intensive”) + -īvus (suffix forming adjectives with the sense ‘doing; related to doing’); and intēnsus is the perfect passive participle of intendō (“to stretch out, strain”), from in- (prefix meaning ‘to, towards’) + tendō (“to extend, stretch, stretch out”) (ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *tend- (“to extend, stretch”)). Doublet of intend. The noun is derived from the adjective.