Reservative
adj, noun ·Rare ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 An exception to a rule or decree; a proviso.
"And, according to this Reservative, in the 8th year of King Richard the Second, one charged before the Kings Bench, was afterwards referred to the Parliament; and there, though the Fact was not contained in the Body of the Statute, yet because of the Proviso afore-mentioned, it was adjudged Treason."
- 1 Tending to reserve or keep; Involving the holding of something in reserve. not-comparable
"But, says Sir Walter Rawleigh in his story of it, Eumenes perceiving the meaning of Antigonus (for that the oath in a few words mentioned the King and Princes of the blood, rather to keep the decorum, than upon any loyall intent, the binding words and summe of all the rest being such, as tyed him fast only to Antigonus, omitting the reservative duty unto the King, or any other of Alexander's children ) rejected the same."
- 2 Expressing reservation; indicating a qualification or doubt. not-comparable
"With this enumeration of the advantages of a refined taste, we would make one reservative remark."
- 3 Pertaining to a form of transfer of real estate, in Spanish and South American law, where full ownership is granted to another person but where the new owner must pay the original owner an annual fee for rights to the land. not-comparable
"That this is a reservative grant, viz., one converying full dominion, is manifest from the character of the annuity which by law is declared to attach to composition titles, viz., its redeemable quality."
- 4 Denoting an action that puts the object of the sentence into a state in which it remains. not-comparable
"In the Reservative, Intensive, and Continuative Forms as well as in the Reflexive Voice and Dative Case, which have no General Incomplete Present, this Tense is used for both the Present Tenses, but can never be used as an Indefinite Present;"
Example
More examples"But, says Sir Walter Rawleigh in his story of it, Eumenes perceiving the meaning of Antigonus (for that the oath in a few words mentioned the King and Princes of the blood, rather to keep the decorum, than upon any loyall intent, the binding words and summe of all the rest being such, as tyed him fast only to Antigonus, omitting the reservative duty unto the King, or any other of Alexander's children ) rejected the same."
Etymology
From reserve + -ative.
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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.