Synonyms for passive
ˈpæs ɪvpas·sive

WiktionaryRate these synonyms:3.0 / 1 vote

1. passiveadjective

   Synonyms:
   idle, disinterested, uninvolved, inactive

   Antonyms:
   active, aggressive

2. passiveadjective

   Being subjected to an action without producing a reaction.

   Synonyms:
   uninvolved, inactive, disinterested, idle

   Antonyms:
   active, aggressive

3. passiveadjective

   Taking no action.

   He remained passive during the protest.

   Synonyms:
   uninvolved, inactive, idle, disinterested

   Antonyms:
   aggressive, active

4. passiveadjective

   Being in the passive voice.

   Synonyms:
   idle, inactive, uninvolved, disinterested

   Antonyms:
   active, aggressive

5. passiveadjective

   Being inactive and submissive in a relationship, especially in a sexual one.

   Synonyms:
   idle, uninvolved, disinterested, inactive

   Antonyms:
   active, aggressive

6. passiveadjective

   Not participating in management.

   Synonyms:
   idle, disinterested, uninvolved, inactive

   Antonyms:
   active, aggressive

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:3.0 / 2 votes

1. passive

   Synonyms:
   docile, gentle, manageable, obedient, peaceable, quiet, submissive, tractable, yielding

   Antonyms:
   balky, fidgety, fractious, fretful, frisky, impatient, intractable, mulish, mutinous, obstinate, rebellious, recalcitrant, refractory, resentful, restiff, restive, restless, skittish, stubborn, unruly, vicious

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. passive

   Synonyms:
   inactive, inert, quiescent, unresisting, unquestioning, negative, enduring, patient

   Antonyms:
   active, alert, resistant, positive, unsubmissive, malcontent, vehement, impatient

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:1.0 / 1 vote

1. passive voice, passiveadjective

   the voice used to indicate that the grammatical subject of the verb is the recipient (not the source) of the action denoted by the verb

   "`The ball was thrown by the boy' uses the passive voice"; "`The ball was thrown' is an abbreviated passive"

   Synonyms:
   passive voice

   Antonyms:
   hands-on, active, proactive, activist, activistic, violent

2. passive, inactiveadjective

   lacking in energy or will

   "Much benevolence of the passive order may be traced to a disinclination to inflict pain upon oneself"- George Meredith

   Synonyms:
   dormant, still, inactive, peaceful, nonoperational, static, motionless

   Antonyms:
   proactive, violent, activistic, active, hands-on, activist

3. passive, peacefuladjective

   peacefully resistant in response to injustice

   "passive resistance"

   Synonyms:
   peaceable, inactive, peaceful

   Antonyms:
   hands-on, active, violent, activist, activistic, proactive

4. passiveadjective

   expressing that the subject of the sentence is the patient of the action denoted by the verb

   "academics seem to favor passive sentences"

   Synonyms:
   inactive, peaceful

   Antonyms:
   activistic, proactive, violent, activist, active, hands-on

Matched Categories

1. • Grammar

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. passiveadjective

   Synonyms:
   quiet, quiescent, inert, inactive, not active

2. passiveadjective

   Synonyms:
   unresisting, submissive, patient, long-suffering

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. passiveadjective

   Synonyms:
   inactive, quiet, inert, receptive, quiescent, patient, unresisting, submissive

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "passive":

   liabilities, liability, negative, reactive, inactive, second-hand, passivity

How to pronounce passive?

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How to use passive in a sentence?

1. Jenny Yip:

   If something doesn’t sit well with you, rather than being passive aggressive about it, acknowledge what is or isn’t working and then have a conversation with whoever is giving you this assignment, defiers usually don’t feel equipped to have these conversations with who they see as authority figures, or they don’t believe that having the conversations would give them any benefit or positive outcome. … That’s not necessarily true.

2. De Niro:

   I have never been this active, but when I see what’s going on with this guy, you have no choice but to be active. It’s past the point of being passive. People have to speak out. They have to speak out over and over and over again. This guy, this administration, is beyond belief. It has to stop.

3. Woody Allen:

   I call that mind free which jealously guards its intellectual rights and powers, which calls no man master, which does not content itself with a passive or hereditary faith, and receives new truth as an angel from Heaven.

4. Sheila Babauta:

   As the first stewards of the land and ocean, our traditional knowledge can guide the way, all together we hold the keys to solving the issues of militarization, climate change and climate colonialism. We are not passive victims. I am here to amplify the voices of those who live on the frontlines.

5. Antonio Brown:

   Why every time something happens bad, or how someone reacts, ‘Aw, he’s crazy, there’s something wrong with his mental health,' there’s nothing wrong with my mental health. Someone told me to get the f--- out of here. I’m not passive-aggressive.