Collins English-English Dictionary

positive ['pɒzɪtɪv]

1. 1. n [music] positive organ a medieval nonportable organ with one manual and no pedals - Compare portative organ

2. 2. adj characterized by or expressing certainty or affirmation

   a positive answer

3. 3. adj composed of or possessing actual or specific qualities; real

   a positive benefit

4. 4. adj tending to emphasize what is good or laudable; constructive

   he takes a very positive attitude when correcting pupils' mistakes

5. 5. adj tending towards progress or improvement; moving in a beneficial direction

6. 6. adj [Philosophy] constructive rather than sceptical

7. 7. adj (of a concept) denoting the presence rather than the absence of some property

8. 8. adj independent of circumstances; absolute or unqualified

9. 9. adj [prenominal] [Spoken] (intensifier)

   a positive delight

10. 10. adj [maths] having a value greater than zero

    a positive number

11. 11. adj designating, consisting of, or graduated in one or more quantities greater than zero

    positive direction

12. 12. adj [maths] measured in a direction opposite to that regarded as negative

13. 13. adj having the same magnitude as but opposite sense to an equivalent negative quantity

14. 14. adj [grammar] denoting the usual form of an adjective as opposed to its comparative or superlative form

15. 15. adj [Biology] indicating movement or growth towards a particular stimulus

16. 16. adj [Physics] (of an electric charge) having an opposite polarity to the charge of an electron and the same polarity as the charge of a proton

17. 17. adj (of a body, system, ion, etc) having a positive electric charge; having a deficiency of electrons

    a positive ion

18. 18. adj (of a point in an electric circuit) having a higher electric potential than some other point with an assigned zero potential

19. 19. adj short for electropositive

20. 20. adj (of a lens) capable of causing convergence of a parallel beam of light

21. 21. adj [med] (of the results of an examination or test) indicating the existence or presence of a suspected disorder or pathogenic organism

22. 22. adj [med] (of the effect of a drug or therapeutic regimen) beneficial or satisfactory

23. 23. adj short for Rh positive

24. 24. adj (of a machine part) having precise motion with no hysteresis or backlash

25. 25. adj [chiefly US] (of a government) directly involved in activities beyond the minimum maintenance of law and order, such as social welfare or the organization of scientific research

26. 26. adj [Economics] of or denoting an analysis that is free of ethical, political, or value judgments

27. 27. adj [astrology] of, relating to, or governed by the group of signs of the zodiac that belong to the air and fire classifications, which are associated with a self-expressive spontaneous nature

28. 28. n something that is positive

29. 29. n [maths] a quantity greater than zero

30. 30. n [photog] a print or slide showing a photographic image whose colours or tones correspond to those of the original subject

31. 31. n [grammar] the positive degree of an adjective or adverb

32. 32. n a positive object, such as a terminal or plate in a voltaic cell

33. 33. n a variant spelling of positif

34. 34. n Compare negative

35. 35. n [Etymology] C13: from Late Latin positivus positive, agreed on an arbitrary basis, from ponere to place