PRIV'ATIVE, adjective Causing privation. 1. Consisting in the absence of something; not positive. privative is in things, what negative is in propositions; as privative blessings, safeguard, liberty and integrity. PRIV'ATIVE, noun That of which the essence is the absence of something. Blackness and darkness are privatives. 1. In grammar, a prefix to a word which changes its signification and gives it a contrary sense, as a, in Greek; unjust; un and in in English, as unwise, inhuman. The word may also be applied to suffixes, as less, in harmless.
Source: Webster's 1828 American Dictionary ↗ · public-domain · returned verbatim, no AI