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Formal vs Descriptive - What's the difference?

formal | descriptive |

As nouns the difference between formal and descriptive

is that formal is an objective while descriptive is (grammar) an adjective (or other descriptive word).

As an adjective descriptive is

of or relating to description.

formal

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Being in accord with established forms.
  • :
  • Official.
  • :
  • Relating to the form or structure of something.
  • :
  • *
  • Relating to formation.
  • :
  • Ceremonial.
  • :(rfquote-sense)
  • Proper, according to strict etiquette; not casual.
  • :
  • Organized; well-structured and planned.
  • :
  • (mathematics) Relating to mere manipulation and construction of strings of symbols, without regard to their meaning.
  • :
  • Antonyms

    * informal

    Derived terms

    * formal cause * formalize * formalist * formalism * formality

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • Formalin.
  • An evening gown.
  • An event with a formal dress code.
  • Jenny took Sam to her Year 12 formal .

    descriptive

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • Of or relating to description.
  • (grammar) Of an adjective, stating an attribute of the associated noun (as heavy'' in ''the heavy dictionary ).
  • (linguistics)   Describing the structure, grammar, vocabulary and actual use of a language.
  • (science, philosophy) Describing and seeking to classify, as opposed to normative or prescriptive.
  • * {{quote-magazine, year=2012, month=March-April
  • , author=John T. Jost , title=Social Justice: Is It in Our Nature (and Our Future)? , volume=100, issue=2, page=162 , magazine=(American Scientist) citation , passage=He draws eclectically on studies of baboons, descriptive anthropological accounts of hunter-gatherer societies and, in a few cases, the fossil record.}}

    Antonyms

    * (science) prescriptive, normative, non-descriptive

    Derived terms

    * descriptively * descriptiveness * descriptive ethics * descriptive geometry * descriptive statistics

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • (grammar) An adjective (or other descriptive word)
  • See also

    * (projectlink) * (projectlink) ----