·noun A word formed in accordance with some rule or usage, as from a root.
II. Formative ·adj Capable of growth and development; germinal; as, living or formative matter.
III. Formative ·adj Serving to form; derivative; not radical; as, a termination merely formative.
IV. Formative ·adj Giving form; having the power of giving form; plastic; as, the formative arts.
V. Formative ·noun That which serves merely to give form, and is no part of the radical, as the prefix or the termination of a word.