Origin: Latin suffix -ive
Intensive has 6 different meanings across 2 categories:
a modifier that has little meaning except to intensify the meaning it modifies
"`up' in `finished up' is an intensifier"
"`honestly' in `I honestly don't know' is an intensifier"
Form of a word with a stronger or more forceful sense than the root on which the intensive is built.
"The prefix im- in impossible creates an intense, absolute negation that goes beyond simple impossibility."
In plain English: An intensive is an extremely focused and demanding period of study where you learn as much material as possible in a very short time.
"The hospital organized an intensive care unit for patients with severe injuries."
characterized by a high degree or intensity; often used as a combining form
"the questioning was intensive"
"intensive care"
"research-intensive"
"a labor-intensive industry"
of agriculture; intended to increase productivity of a fixed area by expending more capital and labor
"intensive agriculture"
"intensive conditions"
Thorough; to a great degree; with intensity.
"The students undertook an intensive study of ancient Greek grammar over just two weeks."
In plain English: Intensive means something that is done with great effort and focus on every detail.
"The hospital has an intensive care unit for patients with severe illnesses."
Usage: Use intensive as an adjective before nouns like care, therapy, or research to describe something done thoroughly and with high concentration of effort. Avoid confusing it with the noun form that refers specifically to linguistic roots used for emphasis in word formation.
The word "intensive" comes from Late Middle English intensif, which was borrowed directly from Old French. It originally meant fervent or great and entered modern usage with its current sense through the addition of an adjective-forming suffix meaning "of the nature of."