indicative

/ɪnˈdɪkədɪv/

/ɪnˈdɪkətɪv/

Other forms: indicatively; indicatives

Use the word indicative when you want to show that something is suggestive or serves as a sign of something. Your willingness to help out with the charity is indicative of your generous nature.

The adjective indicative is usually followed by the word of. After being caught in the storm, you protested that the current condition of your hair and clothes were in no way indicative of your normal grooming habits. Instead, you argue, your appearance is indicative of your work ethic, since you braved wind, rain, and sleet to get to work that day. Did you know that some experts say the rise in skirt hemlines is indicative of economic recovery?

Definitions of indicative

1. adjective

   (usually followed by `of') pointing out or revealing clearly
   “actions indicative of fear”

   synonyms: indicatory, revelatory, significative, suggestive

   revealing

   showing or making known
2. adjective

   relating to the mood of verbs that is used simple in declarative statements
   “indicative mood”

   synonyms: declarative
3. noun

   a mood (grammatically unmarked) that represents the act or state as an objective fact
   synonyms: common mood, declarative, declarative mood, fact mood, indicative mood

   type of:

   modality, mode, mood

   verb inflections that express how the action or state is conceived by the speaker