How to Use passivity in a Sentence

passivity

noun
  • At a weekend rally in Long Beach, Newsom urged Democrats to shake off doubt and passivity and go to the polls.
    Michael R. Blood, ajc, 8 Nov. 2022
  • It could not be said that the cub accepted it with passivity and stoicism.
    Washington Post, 24 Oct. 2020
  • Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egotism.
    Jonathan Taplin, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2023
  • Venus in Virgo brings a certain passivity to the table, Lettman says.
    Elizabeth Gulino, refinery29.com, 2 Oct. 2020
  • Still, the film’s version of Priscilla Presley is a woman whose strength lies in her passivity.
    Vulture, 27 Oct. 2023
  • Shabanau is a four-time world bronze medalist, but Amine scored two separate passivity points to win and advance to the bronze-medal match.
    Cody Goodwin, Detroit Free Press, 5 Aug. 2021
  • This spring might have been one of them, though the basis of that was more aggression at pitches in the strike zone and generally less passivity at the plate.
    Jon Meoli, baltimoresun.com, 8 Aug. 2020
  • The discipline that helped fuel their strong start turned into passivity at the plate.
    Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2022
  • With this simple feature, Flash could be about more than mere passivity.
    Richard C. Moss, Ars Technica, 7 July 2020
  • But Putin’s passivity in the face of internal military threats and his aloof stance may become a major problem for the regime in the near future.
    Tatiana Stanovaya, Foreign Affairs, 8 Aug. 2023
  • The act of staying implies a certain kind of passivity, but anyone who’s been through the New York City rental market knows that to remain is a full-contact sport.
    Curbed, 25 May 2022
  • As to whether his apparent passivity in the face of the war in Ukraine amounts to a moral stain on his reputation, history and his own conscience will judge.
    Paul Starobin, Wired, 22 Mar. 2022
  • The algorithm, of course, favors our passivity, our willingness to be placated and to drift with the tide.
    Maya Singer, Vogue, 12 July 2023
  • And the fact is, Fehr noted, a lot of friendships seem to be able to survive just fine despite their tendency toward passivity.
    Stephanie H. Murray, The Atlantic, 12 Dec. 2022
  • That sort of passivity, and earning applause for it, is a privilege of those already in power.
    Lorraine Ali Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2021
  • Whether worn in the street, on public transit or even in the driver's seat, internet users seem to be torn between obsession and passivity.
    The Arizona Republic, 6 Feb. 2024
  • Wood’s warm and easily moved character makes for a lovely counterpoint to the passivity of the public works staff.
    Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post, 4 Jan. 2023
  • Yet the book vibrates with tension, much of it emanating from her very passivity, her willingness to stand still while the earth shakes beneath her feet.
    Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2021
  • In some ways, McConnell’s passivity had enabled such whiplash.
    Karoun Demirjian, Washington Post, 21 Sep. 2022
  • Those artists who are critical of Putin have shown extreme passivity.
    Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 7 Mar. 2022
  • Conversely, Jesus' life was one of passivity in the face of violence.
    Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 25 Apr. 2013
  • Again the passivity is evident, as if humans should just line up in the proper order of virus exposure and submit to nature’s will.
    Tyler Cowen Bloomberg Opinion (tns), Star Tribune, 16 Oct. 2020
  • His passivity and indecisiveness against Iowa and Ohio State, in particular, seemed out of place relative to the rest of his tape.
    Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 2 Mar. 2022
  • Above all, passivity in the face of competition and the hope that voters will just naturally come around on their own are two indulgences that Biden can ill afford.
    Alex Shephard, The New Republic, 7 Sep. 2023
  • Still, the vicious brutality encountered by officers who fought back makes the passivity of some of their peers all the more confounding.
    Luke Mogelson, The New Yorker, 10 Sep. 2022
  • Moreover, while the Party is good at using its security apparatus to suppress protests, the very passivity of lying flat make the idea much harder for the regime to counter.
    Jane Li, Quartz, 18 June 2021
  • On the other side of the automatic transmission lies the next step in the evolution to complete passivity: the driverless vehicle.
    WSJ, 4 Apr. 2022
  • Biden’s passivity and lack of fight, the Washington Post and other media outlets have reported.
    Brett Clarkson, Sun Sentinel, 28 June 2022
  • Nonviolence should not be confused with passivity: as a form of protest, nonviolence is a practice that exposes violence.
    Masha Gessen, The New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2024
  • Agreeableness morphing into passivity or withholding is the opposite of what workers, especially managers, want.
    Jane Thier, Fortune, 29 July 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'passivity.' 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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