Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Elective

Elective , adjective

[Compare French électif.]

1.
Exerting the power of choice; selecting; as, an elective act.
2.
Pertaining to, or consisting in, choice, or right of choosing; electoral.
The independent use of their elective franchise. — Bancroft
3.
Bestowed or passing by election; as, an elective office.
Kings of Rome were at first elective;... for such are the conditions of an elective kingdom. — Dryden
4.
Dependent on choice; that can be refused; as, an elective college course. Opposite of required or mandatory.
Collocations (1)
Elective affinity or Elective attraction (Chemistry) , a tendency to unite with certain things; chemism.

Elective , noun

In an American college, an optional study or course of study; a course that is not required. [Colloquial]