paˈsivəd.ē, -ətē, -i noun
( -es )
Etymology: passive (I) + -ity
1.
a. : the quality or state of being acted upon from without : passiveness
a certain obstinate patient passivity , a certain lying back upon life — J.C.Powys
his aggressive trends were efforts to compensate for his inherent passivity — Charles Anderson
b. : an instance of passiveness : something that is passive
a vast activity of writers, a vast and hungry passivity of readers — Aldous Huxley
c.
(1) : chemically inactive state : inactivity — used especially of a metal that has lost its normal chemical activity and is resistant to corrosion
(2) : inactivity of an electrode due to polarization
2. : an absence of activity, initiative, or decisiveness : inertia
what amounts in modern battle to stupid passivity — Tom Wintringham
3. : a submission to the will of another or to outside force : submissiveness
has emerged from the passivity of defeat to seize and assert its independence — Time
4. : the construction of the passive voice : the meaning expressed by the passive voice