as in creative
having a role in deciding something's final form
a teacher who was a formative influence on generations of students
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Examples of formative in a Sentence
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Callen Archive is a great reminder that the best vintage fashion collections are borne out of going back to your formative years, when fashion started to lodge in your brain—in McNeil’s case, at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Clair—and chasing personal obsessions.
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Mark Holgate, Vogue, 4 Sep. 2024
Working for the collective good of the community also was instilled in her during those formative years.
—Lola Ogunnaike, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Sep. 2024
The hybrid horror flick celebrates its 24th anniversary on Saturday, August 17 (just in time to round out 2000s Week!), but Mooney can’t remember the last time someone mentioned this formative fever dream of a film to him.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 15 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Walz is a white guy who spent formative years in Valentine, the remote seat of Cherry County, the nation’s top producer of beef cows.
—Hailey Branson-Potts, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for formative 
Mark Holgate, Vogue, 4 Sep. 2024
Working for the collective good of the community also was instilled in her during those formative years.
—Lola Ogunnaike, The Hollywood Reporter, 4 Sep. 2024
The hybrid horror flick celebrates its 24th anniversary on Saturday, August 17 (just in time to round out 2000s Week!), but Mooney can’t remember the last time someone mentioned this formative fever dream of a film to him.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 15 Aug. 2024
Advertisement Walz is a white guy who spent formative years in Valentine, the remote seat of Cherry County, the nation’s top producer of beef cows.
—Hailey Branson-Potts, Los Angeles Times, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for formative
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'formative.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Formative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/formative. Accessed 18 Sep. 2024.
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