restrictive
adjective
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Restrictive covenants (that is, agreements) in real-estate deeds were once used to forbid the buyer from ever selling the property to anyone of another race. These are now illegal, though other kinds of restrictive covenants are very common; in some neighborhoods, they may even tell you what colors you can't paint your house. In grammar, a restrictive clause is one that limits the meaning of something that comes before it. In the sentence "That's the professor who I'm trying to avoid", "who I'm trying to avoid" is a restrictive clause, since it's what identifies the professor. But in the sentence "That's my History professor, who I'm trying to avoid", the same clause is nonrestrictive, since the professor has already been identified as "my History professor". There should always be a comma before a nonrestrictive clause, but not before a restrictive clause.
Examples of restrictive in a Sentence
Giovanni René Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 22 May 2025
The sentences handed down don’t necessarily mean the men have to serve their time in the more restrictive federal prison system.
—Matthew Ormseth, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2025
The restrictive and expensive nature of union-only shows isn’t good for a diverse community.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 19 May 2025
Racially restrictive neighborhood covenants prohibiting Black or Jewish American buyers, for example, were pioneered in the 1940s by the celebrated local real estate developer J.C. Nichols.
—Alfredo Sosa, Christian Science Monitor, 18 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for restrictive
Cite this Entry
“Restrictive.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/restrictive. Accessed 28 May. 2025.
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restrictive
adjective
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restrictive
adjective
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