as in resigned
receiving or enduring without offering resistance
the union rank and file were surprisingly passive about the givebacks in the new labor contract
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Recent Examples of passive
The great transition into passive investing using index funds and ETFs only further fueled growth names’ meteoric rise.
—
Yun Li, CNBC, 28 Mar. 2025
International responses have varied, with the U.S. taking a largely passive stance, while China and other countries continue to supply the junta with military aid and financial support.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
These methods can provide passive cash flow with proper risk management.
—Gianluca Sidoti, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
But the common perception that international players can’t use NIL at all is wrong: Their NIL income just has to be passive income—the T-shirt sales allow the overseas portion of the Lions’ roster to benefit as well.
—Brendan Coffey, Sportico.com, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for passive
Yun Li, CNBC, 28 Mar. 2025
International responses have varied, with the U.S. taking a largely passive stance, while China and other countries continue to supply the junta with military aid and financial support.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Mar. 2025
These methods can provide passive cash flow with proper risk management.
—Gianluca Sidoti, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
But the common perception that international players can’t use NIL at all is wrong: Their NIL income just has to be passive income—the T-shirt sales allow the overseas portion of the Lions’ roster to benefit as well.
—Brendan Coffey, Sportico.com, 20 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for passive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for passive
Adjective
-
In recent weeks, a number of artists canceled planned appearances and resigned positions associated with the center.—
Julia Jacobs,
New York Times,
24 Mar. 2025
-
Some of the more jarring sequences remain amusing despite their brashness: At one point, for example, Mickey narrates a shocking vignette—about a psychopath on Earth who printed multiple copies of himself to carry out grisly murders—with the resigned, wary tone of an office worker.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
7 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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In this framing, children are not autonomous individuals worthy of respect, but future standard-bearers of their parents’ values—which means that the greatest sign of a mother’s success is producing obedient children.—
Hannah Giorgis,
The Atlantic,
31 Mar. 2025
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His oxygen tank sat at his knees like an obedient mastiff.—
Brandon Taylor,
The Atlantic,
4 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Netanyahu appears convinced that his country’s security, along with his own political survival, depends on prolonging the military offensives and keeping both Gaza and Lebanon ungovernable, and therefore acquiescent.—
Mohanad Hage Ali,
Foreign Affairs,
1 Nov. 2024
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The young man’s comment was out of line, and my silence felt somehow acquiescent.—
Judith Martin,
The Mercury News,
21 Sep. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Passive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/passive. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.
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