adjective
C2
Proficient
qualitative
KWOL-i-tuh-tiv
Qualitative (adjective) means Concerned with the nature, character or quality of something rather than with amounts that can be counted or measured. Example: “The report found a qualitative improvement in care that the waiting-time figures never captured.”
adjective
1
Concerned with the nature, character or quality of something rather than with amounts that can be counted or measured.
"The report found a qualitative improvement in care that the waiting-time figures never captured."
"There is a qualitative difference between reading a poem and summarising it."
2
technical Of research: based on interviews, observation, open-ended responses and other non-numerical evidence, analysed for themes and meaning.
"We ran a qualitative study with thirty in-depth interviews."
"Her thesis combines qualitative fieldwork with survey data."
How to use qualitative
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishAbout what something is like, not how much of it there is.
When to use it
Standard in academic, market-research and business writing.
Easily confused with
Common pairings
qualitative research
qualitative data
qualitative analysis
qualitative difference
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The report found a _____ improvement in care that the waiting-time figures never captured.
Etymology
From Latin qualitas 'quality', formed from qualis 'of what kind'.
Synonyms
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Related words
Rhymes for qualitative
See all rhymes for qualitative →Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between qualitative and quantitative?
Quantitative deals with how much or how many, producing numbers you can count, measure and run statistics on. Qualitative deals with what something is like, producing words, images and descriptions analysed for meaning. Most serious research programmes use both, because numbers show the pattern and qualitative work explains why it exists.
What are examples of qualitative data?
Interview transcripts, focus-group recordings, open-ended survey answers, field notes, diary entries, photographs and product reviews. Anything recorded as description rather than as a value on a scale.
Can qualitative research be objective?
It can be systematic and rigorous — with sampling logic, coding frameworks and checks between coders — but it does not claim the statistical generalisability of quantitative work. Its strength is depth and explanation rather than measurement across a population.
What is the meaning of qualitative?
"qualitative" (adjective) means concerned with the nature, character or quality of something rather than with amounts that can be counted or measured.
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