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• carpe diem
  carpe diem

  seize the day; enjoy the present, as opposed to placing all hope in the future.
• Carpe diem
  Carpe diem

  Latin for “Seize the day”: take full advantage of present opportunities. This sentiment is found not only in classical literature but in much of English literature as well (see “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may” and “Had we but world enough, and time, / This coyness, Lady, were no crime.”)

carpe diem

American  

[kahr-pe dee-em, kahr-pee dahy-uhm, kahr-pay dee-uhm] / ˈkɑr pɛ ˈdi ɛm, ˈkɑr pi ˈdaɪ əm, ˈkɑr peɪ ˈdi əm /

1. Latin. seize the day; enjoy the present, as opposed to placing all hope in the future.

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carpe diem British  

/ ˈkɑːpɪ ˈdiːɛm /

1. enjoy the pleasures of the moment, without concern for the future

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Carpe diem Cultural  

1. Latin for “Seize the day”: take full advantage of present opportunities. This sentiment is found not only in classical literature but in much of English literature as well (see “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may” and “Had we but world enough, and time, / This coyness, Lady, were no crime.”)

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carpe diem Idioms  

1. Enjoy the present and don't worry about the future, as in It's a beautiful day, so forget tomorrow's test—carpe diem! Latin for “seize the day,” an aphorism found in the Roman writer Horace's Odes, this phrase has been used in English since the early 1800s.

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Usage

What does carpe diem mean? Carpe diem is a Latin phrase meaning "seize the day." The saying is used to encourage someone to make the most of the present rather than dwelling on the future.

Etymology

Origin of carpe diem

First recorded in 1815–20; literally, “pluck (the fruit of) the day,” from Horace's Odes (1.9)

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

carpe diem Carpe diem

“It was carpe diem, seize the day,” said Josh in an interview earlier this year.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 27, 2026

The girl’s name comes from carpe diem, as in Kenna’s vow to seize the child she never got to hold, but the script has the restraint not to make a big standing-on-a-desk speech about that.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2026

But it’s his secret office nickname, discovered by Williams in this achingly poignant drama of regret, that best characterizes the film’s theme of carpe diem: Mr. Zombie.

From Washington Post ● Jan. 4, 2023

It’s a carpe diem festival — a reminder of impermanence, as the petals shatter and drop.

From Seattle Times ● May 10, 2022

A great deal of his best poetry is merely a variation on carpe diem.

From Old and New Masters by Robert Lynd

It’s a message we can all carry into our week: Carpe diem.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2019

Carpe diem — Byron and the Shelleys surely would have concurred — for how many summers do we have?

From New York Times ● May 27, 2011

Carpe diem — Latin for "seize the day" and on her left arm — seems easy enough.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 20, 2010

Carpe diem, as we used to say at school, which means that one day is as good as another, and, if so why not any time in the day?

From Miss Mackenzie by Anthony Trollope

If he continues to sing Carpe diem when at the age of thirty he is already an old, diseased man, he sings it almost with a sneer of hatred.

From Old and New Masters by Robert Lynd

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