inductive
adjective/ɪnˈdʌktɪv/
/ɪnˈdʌktɪv/
- (specialist) using particular facts and examples to form general rules and principles
- an inductive argument
- inductive reasoning
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- (physics) connected with the induction of electricity
Word Originlate Middle English (in the sense ‘leading to’): from Old French inductif, -ive or late Latin inductivus ‘hypothetical’ (later ‘inducing, leading to’), from Latin inducere ‘lead in’, from in- ‘into’ + ducere ‘to lead’. Sense (1) dates from the mid 18th cent.
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