ad lib

[ ad lib, ad ]

See synonyms for ad lib on Thesaurus.com

noun

something improvised in speech, music, etc.: Was that joke part of your speech or an ad lib?

adverb

at one's pleasure; without restriction.
freely; as needed; without stint: Water can be given to the patients ad lib.

Origin of ad lib

First recorded in 1810–20; see origin at ad libitum

Words Nearby ad lib

Other definitions for ad-lib (2 of 3)

ad-lib

[ ad-lib, ad- ]

verb (used with object),ad-libbed, ad-lib·bing.

to improvise all or part of (a speech, a piece of music, etc.): to ad-lib one's lines.

verb (used without object),ad-libbed, ad-lib·bing.

to act, speak, etc., without preparation: Throughout the play he had to ad-lib constantly.

adjective

impromptu; extemporaneous: ad-lib remarks to hecklers.

Origin of ad-lib

1915–20, Americanism; v. use of ad lib

Other words from ad-lib

ad-libber, noun

Other definitions for ad lib. (3 of 3)

ad lib.

abbreviation

ad libitum.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use ad lib in a sentence

They told me to forget the script because I was going to have to ad-lib everything.
Charlie Brotman, Announcer of Presidential Inaugurals Since Truman’s | Sandra McElwaine | January 17, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
But the prince also proved he could warm up the weather with a clever ad lib.
Prince Charles, BBC Weatherman & More Forecasts by Celebrities (Video) | The Daily Beast | May 11, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Now Guttentag encourages us to forget about the script and ad lib the scene.
My All-Too-Brief Acting Career | Howard Kurtz | July 5, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
I had a brilliant ad lib as I came to: “I think I passed out.”
Pablo Schreiber on His New Off-Broadway Play | Kevin Sessums | February 1, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
It consisted of a monologue delivered by the poisonous young woman to the macaw, occasionally varied by ad lib.
The Book of Susan | Lee Wilson Dodd

This goes on ad lib., and we were soothed to sleep by those wild yells.
The Land of the Black Mountain | Reginald Wyon
Even here, in an embarrassing situation calling for lines spoken ad lib.
Sundry Accounts | Irvin S. Cobb
Well, you look here, my bloke: I'll have fizz ad lib., or it won't wash.
The Ebb-Tide | Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyde Osbourne
"I needed a job awful bad," I answered sullenly, knowing it sounded like an ad lib.
The Old Die Rich | Horace Leonard Gold

British Dictionary definitions for ad-lib

ad-lib

/ (ædˈlɪb) /

verb-libs, -libbing or -libbed

to improvise and deliver without preparation (a speech, musical performance, etc)

adjective(ad lib when predicative)

improvised; impromptu

adverbad lib

without restraint; freely
music short for ad libitum

noun

an improvised performance, often humorous

Origin of ad-lib

C18: short for Latin ad libitum, literally: according to pleasure

Derived forms of ad-lib

ad-libber, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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