dispositive.

1. Sufficient to decide or settle the relevant issue rather than merely contribute to its consideration.

2. Effecting or concerning a legal transfer, assignment or disposition of property.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• dispositive evidence
• dispositive issue

On the page

The missing date was dispositive because it determined whether the claim fell within the permitted period.

The court treated the jurisdictional issue as dispositive without reaching the other arguments.

Usage notes

Primary category: analysis / argumentation / evidence. Forms: Ordinarily non-gradable for the stated logical or evidential status; use degree only where the context genuinely permits it. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: evidence assessment, qualification, argument critique, assumption analysis. Disciplines: argumentation, logic, research interpretation, formal writing. Commonness: uncommon.