decisiveness

noun

Definition of decisivenessnext
as in determination
firm or unwavering adherence to one's purpose moved with speed and decisiveness in investigating the charges of the use of excessive force by the police

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of decisiveness While Whitman has no grocery experience and little retail experience (from her time as CEO of eBay), she was brought in by Albertsons for her turnaround chops and decisiveness. — Phil Wahba, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026 The window to capitalize on these moves is narrow, demanding precision and decisiveness. — David Capablanca, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026 Cousins’ decisiveness and awareness are key traits Las Vegas wants Mendoza to observe and learn to emulate. — Sam Warren, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026 Not the product who was named the starter, but just the fact that Florida was willing to settle on one arm, an issue of decisiveness previous coach Billy Napier struggled with two years ago. — Noah White, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2026 Black got the start and ran for 33 yards on eight carries, showing the decisiveness and explosiveness the 49ers liked about him during his time helping Indiana win a national championship last season. — Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 21 Aug. 2026 Legal experts say the speed and decisiveness of the Department of Justice’s proposed antitrust settlement with OhioHealth should put other hospitals on notice. — Tara Bannow, STAT, 17 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for decisiveness
  1. determination
  2. decision
  3. resolve
  4. persistence
  5. resoluteness
Noun
  • Lydia obviously provides some support, ballast and encouragement, determination for him.
    — Hilary Lewis, HollywoodReporter, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Any value or meaning your creative work will ever have begins with your determination to actually do it.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of determination
Noun
  • The show’s creative team was able to concentrate on making the series itself rather than second-guessing every decision to appeal to the international market.
    — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The review describes cognitive and behavioral consequences that can include impairments in working memory, decision making and emotional regulation.
    — Shahrzad Jalali, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of decision
Noun
  • But Carney’s resolve is being tested on more than one front, after the separatist Parti Québécois won Quebec's provincial election earlier this month.
    — Callum Sutherland, Time, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Ukraine is warning that Russia is escalating that strategy this winter to break Ukraine’s resolve in its defense.
    — Laura Kelly, The Hill, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of resolve
Noun
  • Then there’s a clearing of throats, and like malware, the narratives begin to establish persistence over mood and multiply.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The dehumanization of Black people represented by the persistence of Confederate iconography in mainstream culture became an underground signifier of the precariousness of the freedoms enshrined by the 14th Amendment.
    — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026
Definition of persistence
Noun
  • His loving, pragmatic wife, Mi-ri (Son Ye-jin), gamely downsizes their middle-class life to fit their new reality — but her resoluteness only exacerbates his despair.
    — Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 10 Oct. 2025
Definition of resoluteness

Browse Nearby Words

decisively
decisiveness
deck
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Decisiveness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/decisiveness. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All