I. kəmˈped.əd.]iv, -etət] also ]əv\ adjective
Etymology: competit- (as in competitor ) + -ive
: of or relating to competition: as
a. : characterized by, arising from, or designated to exhibit rivalry among two or more equally matched individuals or forces especially for a particular goal, position, or reward
competitive sports
competitive spirit
competitive tactics
competitive examinations
b. : produced by, based on, resulting from, or capable of existing in rivalry of economic endeavor and without the presence of monopoly or collusion
a competitive market
competitive bids
competitive prices
chemical cotton prices are now competitive with wood pulp — Wall Street Journal
• com·pet·i·tive·ly adverb
• com·pet·i·tive·ness noun -es
II. adjective
: depending for effectiveness on the relative concentration of two or more substances
competitive inhibition of an enzyme
competitive protein binding