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operative

/ˈɑpəɹətɪv/noun, adjective4 syllables

Operative means: being in force or having or exerting force.

Synonyms for operative26

noun, as in someone who can be employed as a detective to collect information and assist in criminal investigations

private detective, PI, private eye, private investigator, shamus, sherlock

noun, as in a person secretly employed in espionage for a government

secret agent, intelligence officer, intelligence agent

adjective, as in being in force or having or exerting force

operant, effective, good, in effect, in force, operational, in operation, operating, working

adjective, as in (of e.g. a machine) performing or capable of performing

adjective, as in relating to or requiring or amenable to treatment by surgery especially as opposed to medicine

surgical, preoperative, postoperative

adjective, as in effective; producing a desired effect

Opposites of operative

inoperative

What does operative mean?6

adjective

1

being in force or having or exerting force“operative regulations”

2

(of e.g. a machine) performing or capable of performing“in running (or working) order”

3

relating to or requiring or amenable to treatment by surgery especially as opposed to medicine“a surgical appendix”

4

effective; producing a desired effect“the operative word”

noun

1

someone who can be employed as a detective to collect information and assist in criminal investigations

2

a person secretly employed in espionage for a government

Definitions from the Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Operative in a sentence

  • There was also a general paucity of trained operatives.Lenjo
  • An undercover operative infiltrated the organization.darinmex
  • Sami was an undercover police operative.OsoHombre
  • I am a post-operative transsexual woman.shekitten
  • Mary's post-operative abdominal pain was caused by the surgeon leaving a surgical instrument inside her.patgfisher

Sentences from Tatoeba, CC BY 2.0 FR, credited to their authors.

Forms of operative

as a noun

plural
operatives