as in withdrawn
not comfortable around people
a recessive genius who was most comfortable working alone in his chemistry lab
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of recessive
His presence is so recessive that the resulting footage, however cannily composed, looks, for the most part, like it was made by an unattended surveillance camera.
—
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2026
White tigers are the result of inbreeding to preserve a rare recessive gene.
—Quinn Clark, jsonline.com, 27 Oct. 2025
As leaders go, Dynevor (Bridgerton) is recessive and inscrutable, at least in the family get-togethers that form the narrative.
—Sheri Linden, HollywoodReporter, 27 Oct. 2025
Further examinations revealed that the golden retriever TNNI3 mutation is autosomal recessive.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for recessive
Richard Brody, New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2026
White tigers are the result of inbreeding to preserve a rare recessive gene.
—Quinn Clark, jsonline.com, 27 Oct. 2025
As leaders go, Dynevor (Bridgerton) is recessive and inscrutable, at least in the family get-togethers that form the narrative.
—Sheri Linden, HollywoodReporter, 27 Oct. 2025
Further examinations revealed that the golden retriever TNNI3 mutation is autosomal recessive.
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for recessive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for recessive
Adjective
-
His is a more enlightened era, but Hannes, lonely and withdrawn, doesn’t share his classmates’ interest in campus sit-ins and free love.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
8 May 2026
-
Lost was the fact that a grid-connection request is just the start of a multiyear process that involves permitting and legal review and often ends in withdrawn or downsized projects.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
7 May 2026
Adjective
-
Morrow was especially dominant in the second, putting up 10 points and six rebounds to come just shy of a second straight first-half double-double.—
Emily Adams,
Hartford Courant,
14 May 2026
-
Maglares finished one out shy of a complete game for the Rockets in a 4-2 Fox Valley Conference win.—
Paul Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
After collecting just 468 rushing yards and two touchdowns with the Cougars, Davis produced 731 rushing yards and eight touchdowns in his lone campaign with the Aggies.—
Mike Kaye,
Charlotte Observer,
18 May 2026
-
The film starts out with a lone sheriff [Hwang Jung-min] who knows there’s something dangerous out there in the shadows causing death and destruction.—
Baz Bamigboye,
Deadline,
18 May 2026
Adjective
-
An introverted young boxer with incredible ability and skill who battles to overcome low confidence, high anxiety and stage fright in pursuit of her potential.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
19 May 2026
-
This reductive view of the world—women things bad, men things good—is the mirror image of the worst excesses of 2010s Tumblr feminism, when introverted teenage girls posted hashtags like #KillAllMen and drank from mugs that read MALE TEARS.—
Helen Lewis,
The Atlantic,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Recessive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/recessive. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
