1. not preventive • Ant: preventive • Similar to: bailable 2. granting or inclined or able to grant permission; not strict in discipline - direct primary legislation is largely permissive rather than prescriptive - permissive parents • Ant: unpermissive • Similar to: indulgent, lenient, soft • Derivationally related forms: permissiveness, permit • Attrubites: permissiveness, tolerance