regressive

[ri-gres-iv] /rɪˈgrɛs ɪv/
adjective
1.
regressing or tending to regress; retrogressive.
2.
Biology. of, pertaining to, or effecting regression.
3.
(of tax) decreasing proportionately with an increase in the tax base.
4.
Logic. obtained from or characterized by backward reasoning.
Origin
1625-35; regress + -ive
Related forms
regressively, adverb
regressiveness, regressivity
[ree-gre-siv-i-tee] /ˌri grɛˈsɪv ɪ ti/ (Show IPA), noun
nonregressive, adjective
nonregressively, adverb
unregressive, adjective
unregressively, adverb
unregressiveness, noun
Examples from the web for regressive
  • It's slightly regressive for lower-income working people that have no option but to drive.
  • By and large, such taxes are regarded as regressive since they leave savings income untaxed.
  • Denying this admittedly disturbing insight about human evolution seems far more irrational and regressive than embracing it.
  • Perhaps regressive taxes are politically impossible to implement, but it's a useful academic question nonetheless.
  • As it started out last year, it could have wound up making the tax code overall more regressive than it had been previously.
  • Since renters typically have lower incomes and wealth, zoning is often a highly regressive form of taxation, he says.
  • But, as a study of regressive adolescence, the evening is not without interest.
  • And if lotteries are a tax, they suffer from being regressive.
  • Many include getting rid of the regressive and job-crushing payroll tax and replacing it with something else.
  • The highly regressive nature of this printing tax is illustrated by the food riots breaking out around the world.
British Dictionary definitions for regressive

regressive

/rɪˈɡrɛsɪv/
adjective
1.
regressing or tending to regress
2.
(of a tax or tax system) levied or graduated so that the rate decreases as the amount taxed increases See progressive (sense 5)
3.
of, relating to, or characteristic of regression
Derived Forms
regressively, adverb
regressiveness, noun
Word Origin and History for regressive
adj.

1630s; see regress + -ive. In reference to taxation, it is attested from 1889. Related: Regressively.

regressive in Medicine

regressive re·gres·sive (rĭ-grěs'ĭv)
adj.

  1. Having a tendency to return or to revert.

  2. Characterized by regression.

re·gres'sive·ness n.