Formative: meaning, definitions and examples

Used when talking about experiences or periods in one's life that have a strong influence on shaping their character and development.

• Her formative years were spent in a small village; The project played a formative role in his career

Used to describe something that provides a lot of useful information, typically in an easy-to-understand manner.

• The guidebook is very informative about the local history; The documentary was highly informative

Refers to something that is intended to teach or provide knowledge, often with a focus on practical or moral lessons. It has a slightly formal or didactic tone.

• The teacher provided an instructive lesson on ancient civilizations; His mistakes were instructive to the rest of the team

Applied to experiences, activities, or content designed specifically to impart knowledge or skills.

• The educational program aims to teach kids about environmental conservation; Attending the seminar was very educational

This word is used to describe something that shapes or influences development.

• Those years were a formative period in her life
• The book had a formative influence on his career

Typically used in linguistics to refer to a set of letters added to a word to change its meaning. It can be either a prefix or a suffix.

• In the word 'unhappy', 'un' is an affix
• You can often change the meaning of a word with an appropriate affix

In linguistics, a prefix is a set of letters added to the beginning of a word to change its meaning.

• The prefix 'pre' in front of 'view' changes the word to 'preview'
• Adding the prefix 'un' to 'lucky' changes the meaning to 'unlucky'

In linguistics, a suffix is a set of letters added to the end of a word to change its meaning.

• 'ness' in 'happiness' is a suffix
• The suffix 'ing' in 'running' shows the verb is in the present continuous tense