normative

Definitions

norm (standard) + -ative (tending to) = 'setting the standard.' The crucial point: it doesn't describe what is normal, it prescribes what should be the standard. Normative claims are about how things ought to be, not how they are.

Why It Means This

Normative is the philosopher's word for 'prescriptive.' The standard contrast is normative vs descriptive: descriptive statements report what is (most people lie sometimes), normative statements say what ought to be (you should not lie). The same split runs through economics (normative vs positive economics) and linguistics (a prescriptive grammar rule is normative).

Common Collocations

• 1.normative ethics规范伦理学
• 2.normative framework规范框架
• 3.normative standard规范标准

Example Sentences

• 1.

  Ethics is largely a normative field: it asks how we ought to act.

• 2.

  The report mixes descriptive findings with normative recommendations.

• 3.

  These guidelines are normative, not optional suggestions.

Easily Confused

normative vs descriptive — descriptive tells you what is (how people actually behave); normative tells you what ought to be (the standard to aim for). If a sentence contains 'should' or 'ought,' it's normative; if it just reports facts, it's descriptive.