definite, definitive, distinct, distinctive

Question

What's the difference between definite and definitive, distinct and distinctive?Could you please give me some examples?Thanks for answering my questions

Likeguslee · Accepted Answer

Definite => certain, precise, indisputable, clearly defined => a definite statement of the terms of the will

Definitive => authoritative and complete => a definitive biography => this is the standard against which others will be measured.

The following usage note is from American Heritage Dictionary

Usage Note: Definite and definitive both apply to what is precisely defined or explicitly set forth. But definitive generally refers specifically to a judgment or description that serves as a standard or reference point for others, as in the definitive decision of the court (which sets forth a final resolution of a judicial matter) or the definitive biography of Nelson (i.e., the biography that sets the standard against which all other accounts of Nelson's life must be measured).

Distinct => clearly defined, unquestionable => distinct advantage

Distinctive => serving to define, distinguishing => distinctive tribal taboos

The following usage note from American Heritage Dictionary will explain the difference between these two terms:

Usage Note: A thing is distinct if it is sharply distinguished from other things; a property or attribute is distinctive if it enables us to distinguish one thing from another. The warbler is not a distinct species means that the warbler is not a clearly defined type of bird. The warbler has a distinctive song means that the warbler's song enables us to distinguish the warbler from other birds.

Excerpted from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition © 1996 by Houghton Mifflin Company.

definite, definitive, distinct, distinctive

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