Jákvæður

Jákvæður is an Icelandic adjective meaning positive, affirmative, favorable, or optimistic. It is used to describe people, attitudes, outcomes, statements, and characteristics that are considered good or beneficial. The word can refer to a favorable assessment of a situation, a hopeful outlook, or the presence of a useful property.

In mathematics and science, jákvæð/positives are used to describe positive values, for example jákvæð tala means a positive number. In medical testing or diagnostics, a positive result is described with forms of the word such as jákvætt or jákvæður, as in “niðurstaða prófs var jákvæð” (the test result was positive). Adjectives in Icelandic decline to agree with the gender and number of the noun they modify, so the form of jákvður changes with the noun.

The opposite of jákvætt is neikvæður (negative). Related concepts include jákvæðni (positivity) and broader notions of optimism in Icelandic discourse. Jákvæður is common in everyday language as well as in formal writing, where it conveys evaluation, expectation, or measurement that is favorable.