disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change.
cautiously moderate or purposefully low: a conservative estimate.
traditional in style or manner; avoiding novelty or showiness: conservative suit.
(often initial capital letter) of or relating to the Conservative party.
(initial capital letter) of, relating to, or characteristic of Conservative Jews or Conservative Judaism.
having the power or tendency to conserve or preserve.
Mathematics. (of a vector or vector function) having curl equal to zero; irrotational; lamellar.
noun
a person who is conservative in principles, actions, habits, etc.
a supporter of conservative political policies.
(initial capital letter) a member of a conservative political party, especially the Conservative party in Great Britain.
a preservative.
Origin of conservative
1350–1400; <Late Latin conservātīvus, equivalent to Latin conservāt(us) (see conservation) + -īvus-ive; replacing Middle English conservatif < Middle French <Latin, as above
The conservative Media Research Center has posted a public letter urging supporters not to listen to non-conservative media.
Conservative Media Warns Readers Not to Listen to 'The Media'|David Frum|September 26, 2012|DAILY BEAST
She was, to give her some credit, the first speaker of the night who tried to reach out to non-conservative voters.
Ann Romney’s Speech|Michael Tomasky|August 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST
British Dictionary definitions for conservative (1 of 2)
conservative
/ (kənˈsɜːvətɪv) /
adjective
favouring the preservation of established customs, values, etc, and opposing innovation
of, characteristic of, or relating to conservatism
tending to be moderate or cautiousa conservative estimate
conventional in style or typea conservative suit
med(of treatment) designed to alleviate symptomsCompare radical (def. 4)
physicsa field of force, system, etc, in which the work done moving a body from one point to another is independent of the path taken between themelectrostatic fields of force are conservative
noun
a person who is reluctant to change or consider new ideas; conformist
a supporter or advocate of conservatism
adjective, noun
a less common word for preservative
Derived forms of conservative
conservatively, adverbconservativeness, noun
British Dictionary definitions for conservative (2 of 2)
Conservative
/ (kənˈsɜːvətɪv) /
adjective(in Britain, Canada, and elsewhere)
of, supporting, or relating to a Conservative Party
of, relating to, or characterizing Conservative Judaism