MEANING
In a way that settles a question or establishes a conclusion without leaving a reasonable basis for revision.
Use it for
describing evidence claimed to settle a dispute; stating that a question remains unresolved; distinguishing suggestive findings from conclusive proofSignals a claim to conclusive resolution, making the strength of an evidential commitment explicit. Academic functions: Evidence, Argumentation, Qualification / Uncertainty.
Words that belong together
- definitively establish
- definitively resolve a question
- not definitively demonstrated
On the page
The surviving records do not definitively establish who authorized the payment.
No single interview can definitively resolve the competing interpretations of the policy.
Nearby words
Word forms
- Base
- definitively
Usage notes
Adverb modifying a verb or conclusion. Commonly definitively establish, definitively answer, or not definitively resolved; no inflected forms. Register: formal. Commonness: moderately common (qualitative editorial estimate, informed by dictionaries/corpus).
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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