conservative (conservatives plural )
The spelling Conservative is also used for meaning 1.
1 adj A Conservative politician or voter is a member of or votes for the Conservative Party in Britain.
(=Tory)
Most Conservative MPs appear happy with the government's reassurances., ...disenchanted Conservative voters.
Conservative is also a noun., n-count
In 1951 the Conservatives were returned to power.
2 adj Someone who is conservative has right-wing views.
(=right-wing)
...counties whose citizens invariably support the most conservative candidate in any election.
Conservative is also a noun., n-count
The new judge is 50-year-old David Suitor who's regarded as a conservative.
3 adj Someone who is conservative or has conservative ideas is unwilling to accept changes and new ideas.
It is essentially a narrow and conservative approach to child care.
4 adj If someone dresses in a conservative way, their clothes are conventional in style.
The girl was well dressed, as usual, though in a more conservative style.
♦
conservatively adv ADV with v
She was always very conservatively dressed when we went out.
5 adj A conservative estimate or guess is one in which you are cautious and estimate or guess a low amount which is probably less that the real amount.
usu ADJ n
A conservative estimate of the bill, so far, is about £22,000..., This guess is probably on the conservative side.
♦
conservatively adv ADV with v
The bequest is conservatively estimated at £30 million.