as in traditional
based on customs usually handed down from a previous generation
even in this age of e-mail the prescriptive response to a wedding gift is a handwritten thank-you note
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of prescriptive
Control should feel empowering, not prescriptive.
—
Tony Bradley, Forbes.com, 24 Jan. 2026
Having cumbersome, highly prescriptive zoning rules that say that housing must go here and manufacturing there and retail there doesn’t make for a better city.
—Bradley Tusk, New York Daily News, 18 Jan. 2026
Overly prescriptive solutions to legitimate problems often lead to unintended consequences that require yet more responses by policymakers.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 11 Jan. 2026
Public decisions were dictated in advance by prescriptive rules, or had to be proved in public processes to be objectively correct.
—Philip K. Howard, The Atlantic, 10 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for prescriptive
Tony Bradley, Forbes.com, 24 Jan. 2026
Having cumbersome, highly prescriptive zoning rules that say that housing must go here and manufacturing there and retail there doesn’t make for a better city.
—Bradley Tusk, New York Daily News, 18 Jan. 2026
Overly prescriptive solutions to legitimate problems often lead to unintended consequences that require yet more responses by policymakers.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 11 Jan. 2026
Public decisions were dictated in advance by prescriptive rules, or had to be proved in public processes to be objectively correct.
—Philip K. Howard, The Atlantic, 10 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for prescriptive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prescriptive
Adjective
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Athletes from seven different countries, including Japan, rank among the top 10 in the current women’s World Cup standings compared to just the traditional four for men.—
Dana ONeil,
CNN Money,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Unlike traditional ransomware groups, ShinyHunters no longer focuses on encrypting systems.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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When the sport’s governing body standardized its current judging system at the Olympics 20 years ago, a quadruple jump — that’s four full turns in the air before landing — was barely a customary skill for male skaters.—
Robert Samuels,
Washington Post,
10 Feb. 2026
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Those are big shoes to fill, but Mero has stepped into them with his customary smoothness, quickly injecting a millennial POV into the airwaves alongside co-hosts Shani Kulture, Miabelle, Kazeem Famuyide, and DJ Kast One.—
Jeff Ihaza,
Rolling Stone,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Cold storage facilities have long struggled to automate inventory management due to frost, airflow, condensation, and glare, all of which degrade conventional sensors and scanning systems.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Feb. 2026
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Her friends, meanwhile, attend a conventional in-person high school.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Prescriptive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prescriptive. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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