par ‧ ti ‧ tive /ˈpɑːtətɪv, ˈpɑːtɪtɪv $ ˈpɑːr-/ BrE AmE noun [countable] technical
a word which comes before a noun and shows that only part of something is being described, for example the word ‘some’ in the phrase ‘some of the cake’
—partitive adjective