predictive

adjective

pre·​dic·​tive pri-ˈdik-tiv 

1

: of, relating to, or usable or valuable for prediction

predictive medical factors

2

: based on or generated by using methods of prediction

predictive models

predictive text

Usually predictive policing refers to feeding reams of city data into a computer and dispatching extra officers to areas that are deemed to be at high risk of future crime.

—Leon Neyfakh

predictively adverb

Like an astrological chart, it can be made to fit any case, and it works better retrospectively than predictively.

—Carol Tavris

Synonyms

• prophetic
• prophetical

Examples of predictive in a Sentence

unfortunately, the stock market crash of 1929 turned out to be a predictive event, for the next decade was consumed by the Great Depression

Recent Examples on the Web

This next-level personalization creates eerily intuitive, fully predictive dynamic experiences. —Dani Nadel, Forbes, 24 Jan. 2025

Last year, the BAFTAs were quite predictive of the Oscars. —Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 21 Jan. 2025

This mindset shift aligns with Feinman’s embrace of P4 medicine — personalized, preventive, predictive and participatory care. —Allison Palmer, Miami Herald, 16 Jan. 2025

Importantly, variation in one genetic trait is not predictive of other genetic traits. —Shoumita Dasgupta, The Conversation, 13 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1637, in the meaning defined at sense 1