I. ˈväkəd.iv, -ətiv adjective
Etymology: Middle English vocatif, from Middle French, from Latin vocativus, from vocatus (past participle of vocare to call) + -ivus -ive — more at voice
1.
a. : of, relating to, or being a grammatical case marking the one addressed — used especially in the grammar of languages that have relatively full inflection
Latin Domine in miserere, Domine “have mercy, O Lord” is in the vocative case
a vocative ending
b. of a word or word group : marking the one addressed even when this relation is not marked by an inflectional element
mother in “mother, come here”, beautiful in “hello, beautiful”, and my beloved in “be assured, my beloved, that I will come” are vocative expressions
2. : characterized by fluent address toward others : voluble , garrulous
• voc·a·tive·ly -əd.ə̇vlē, -ətə̇v-, -li adverb
II. noun
( -s )
1. : the vocative case of a language
2. : a form in the vocative case