Meaning & use
informative
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Meaning
adjectivecomparableapproving
Giving you useful facts or knowledge that helps you understand something.
Grammar: Used before a noun or after a linking verb: an informative talk; the talk was informative.
Patterns
- informative about something
The museum guide was very informative about local history.
I found the leaflet clear and informative.
She gave an informative talk on healthy eating.
Word forms
| comparative | more informative |
|---|---|
| superlative | most informative |
Common combinations
- highly informative
- The lecture was highly informative.
- informative article
- I read an informative article on sleep.
- informative and entertaining
- The documentary was informative and entertaining.
- informative guide
- The informative guide pointed out hidden details.
- less informative
- The second report was less informative than the first.
Synonyms and how they differ
- instructive
- Instructive suggests that you learn a lesson or method from it, while informative simply means it gives facts.
- educational
- Educational is used for material designed for learning, such as school programs, and is broader than informative.
- enlightening
- Enlightening implies a deeper insight that changes your understanding, which is stronger than informative.
- revealing
- Revealing suggests it uncovers something hidden, whereas informative just provides useful facts.
Opposites
Word family
- inform verb
- to tell someone facts
- information noun
- facts or details about something
- informant noun
- a person who gives information, often secretly
- informatively adverb
- in a way that gives useful facts
- uninformative adjective
- giving little or no useful information
Commonly confused: informative or informal?
informative vs informal
Informal means relaxed and not official, while informative means giving useful facts; the two look alike but are unrelated.
Practice
The brochure was colorful but not very ______, since it never explained the prices or dates.
Choose one answer.
Informative means giving useful facts, which the brochure failed to do. Informed describes a person who knows things, so it cannot describe a brochure.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “informative”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.