attributive
UK: əˈtrɪbjʊtɪv | US: əˈtrɪbjətɪv
adj. relating to or functioning as an attribute (a quality or feature regarded as characteristic of something)
adj. (grammar) describing a word or phrase that modifies a noun by specifying its attributes
The word "attributive" originates from the Latin "attributus," the past participle of "attribuere," meaning "to assign" or "to bestow." The morpheme "at-" (a variant of "ad-") means "to," and "tribute" comes from "tribuere," meaning "to assign" or "to grant." The suffix "-ive" forms adjectives indicating a tendency or function. Over time, "attributive" evolved in English to describe something that assigns or designates qualities, particularly in grammar, where it refers to words that modify nouns by specifying attributes.
In the phrase "blue sky," "blue" is an attributive adjective.
The term "attributive" is often used in linguistic studies to describe noun modifiers.
Not all adjectives can function in an attributive position.
The attributive use of participles is common in English (e.g., "a running stream").
Some languages have distinct forms for attributive and predicative adjectives.