Prescriptive vs. Descriptive

Prescriptiveadjective

Of or pertaining to prescribing or enjoining, especially an action or behavior based on a norm or standard.

Prescriptiveadjective

Consisting in, or acquired by, immemorial or long-continued use and enjoyment; as, a prescriptive right of title; pleading the continuance and authority of long custom.

Prescriptiveadjective

Of or pertaining to the doctrine that acceptable grammatical rules should be prescribed by authority, rather than be determined by common usage.

Prescriptiveadjective

giving directives or rules;

Prescriptiveadjective

based on or prescribing a norm or standard;

Descriptiveadjective

Of, relating to, or providing a description.

Descriptiveadjective

(grammar) Of an adjective, stating an attribute of the associated noun (as heavy in the heavy dictionary).

Descriptiveadjective

(linguistics) Describing the structure, grammar, vocabulary and actual use of a language.

Descriptiveadjective

Describing and seeking to classify, as opposed to normative or prescriptive.

Descriptivenoun

(grammar) An adjective (or other descriptive word)

Descriptiveadjective

Tending to describe; having the quality of representing; containing description; as, a descriptive figure; a descriptive phrase; a descriptive narration; a story descriptive of the age.

Descriptiveadjective

serving to describe or inform or characterized by description;

Descriptiveadjective

concerned with phenomena (especially language) at a particular period without considering historical antecedents;

Descriptiveadjective

describing the structure of a language;