transformative

English

WOTD – 21 April 2021

Etymology

From Medieval Latin transformātīvus (“transformative”), from Latin trānsfōrmātus (“transformed”) + -īvus (suffix attached to the perfect passive participial stems of verbs, forming deverbal adjectives meaning ‘doing or related to doing [the verb]’). Trānsfōrmātus is the perfect passive participle of trānsfōrmō (“to transform”), from trāns- (prefix meaning ‘across; beyond; through’) + fōrmō (“to fashion, form, format, shape”) (from fōrma (“appearance, figure, form, shape”); further etymology unknown, perhaps related to Ancient Greek μορφή (morphḗ, “a form, shape”)). The English word is analysable as transform +‎ -ative.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /trɑːnsˈfɔːmətɪv/, /tɹæns-/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /tɹænsˈfɔɹmətɪv/, [-ɾɪv]

  • Audio (Mid-Atlantic US):

    (file)

• Hyphenation: trans‧form‧a‧tive

Adjective

transformative (comparative more transformative, superlative most transformative)

1. That causes a transformation; causing a notable and lasting change

   Synonyms: transformatory, transmutative

   Antonym: nontransformative

   • 2019 November 6, Graeme Pickering, “New targets for Northumberland”, in Rail, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire: Bauer Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 46:

     "You'll know the transformative effect that the Metro has had on the whole of Tyneside," says NCC [Northumberland County Council] leader Peter Jackson. "This new passenger line will have the same effect on southeast Northumberland. It's a transformative project and we're going to make sure it happens."

2. (linguistics) Chiefly in transformative-generative: of or relating to a theory of generative grammar in which defined operations called transformations produce new sentences from existing ones; transformational.

Derived terms

• biotransformative
• nontransformative
• transformative action
• transformative economics
• transformative justice
• transformative learning
• transformatively
• transformative planning
• transformative research
• transformativity

 

Related terms

• transform
• transformable
• transformance (rare)
• transformant
• transformation
• transformational
• transformator (archaic)
• transformatory
• transformed (adjective)
• transformer
• transformerless
• transforming (adjective, noun)
• transformism
• transformist

 

Translations

that causes transformation

• Catalan: transformatiu
• Estonian: transformeeriv
• Finnish: käänteentekevä
• French: transformateur (fr)
• Italian: trasformativo
• Middle English: vertuous (rare)
• Polish: transformacyjny
• Spanish: transformativo (es)

of or relating to a theory of generative grammar in which defined operations called transformations produce new sentences from existing ones — see also transformational

• Russian: преврати́тельный (ru) (prevratítelʹnyj)

Further reading

• transformational grammar on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
• transformation (disambiguation) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia