English

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Etymology

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From disrupt +‎ -ive. In the business sense popularized by Clayton Christensen and Joseph Bower, see 1995 citation.

Pronunciation

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  • (UK) IPA(key): /dɪsˈɹʌptɪv/, /dɪzˈɹʌptɪv/, /dɪzˈɹʊptɪv/
  • Audio (Southern England):(file)
  • (US) IPA(key): /dɪsˈɹʌptɪv/
  • Hyphenation: dis‧rup‧tive

Adjective

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disruptive (comparative more disruptive, superlative most disruptive)

  1. Causing disruption or unrest.
    Children who exhibit disruptive behaviour may be expelled from school.
  2. (business) Causing major change, as in a market.
    disruptive technologies
    • 1995 January–February, Joseph L. Bower, Clayton M. Christensen, “Disruptive Technologies: Catching the Wave”, in Harvard Business Review[1]:
      Each time a disruptive technology emerged, between one-half and two-thirds of the established manufacturers failed to introduce models employing the new architecture—in stark contrast to their timely launches of critical sustaining technologies.
    • 2005, Karl D. Schubert, CIO Survival Guide, page 222:
      [] companies tend to lose their leadership positions to companies that enter the market with a disruptive technology or market change.

Antonyms

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Derived terms

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Translations

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Further reading

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German

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Pronunciation

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Adjective

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disruptive

  1. inflection of disruptiv:
    1. strong/mixed nominative/accusative feminine singular
    2. strong nominative/accusative plural
    3. weak nominative all-gender singular
    4. weak accusative feminine/neuter singular