animated
Americanadjective
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full of life, action, or spirit; lively; vigorous.
an animated debate on the death penalty.
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made or equipped to move or give the appearance of moving in an animallike fashion.
animated puppets.
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containing representations of animals or mechanical objects that appear to move as real ones do.
an animated window display.
adjective
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full of vivacity and spirit; lively
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characterized by movement and activity
an animated scene met her eye
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possessing life; animate
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moving or appearing to move as if alive
an animated display
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pertaining to cinematographic animation
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of animated
Explanation
Something that seems full of life and movement is said to be animated. Animated films for television and movies include cartoons, Claymation, puppets, and computer-generated images, which are all simulations of living things. The Latin animāre "give breath to" is the basis for the word animated. The business of animated films has grown with the advent of computers, but the idea of animating something began long before cartoons and CGI. In Mary Shelley's classic 19th-century novel "Frankenstein," the monster, built of dead parts, is animated by electrical impulses, an idea that "sparked" a fascination with regeneration that survives to this very day.
Vocabulary lists containing animated
Speak Your Mind: Anim
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Esperanza Rising
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Vocabulary from "Community is the 'killer app' missing from virtual reality" by Dmitri Williams
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A capybara named Chispi appeared in the Disney movie Encanto, and a friendly capybara played a big role in Flow, which won the 2025 Oscar for Best Animated Feature.
From Slate • May 27, 2026
Where to watch: Disney+ Nominated for: Animated feature What we said: “‘Elio’ is a breezy Pixar adventure, the studio’s pivot back to making original, rip-roaring children’s yarns.”
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 22, 2026
Animated sequels have become a critical business for Disney, which had hits last year in both “Moana 2” and “Inside Out 2.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 30, 2025
Animated show CoComelon, which started on YouTube in 2006, was acquired by Netflix in 2020 - but the company has recently chosen to not renew its deal.
From BBC • Aug. 21, 2025
Animated by this new certainty—choosing the right dress had surely helped—she crossed the hallway, pushed through the baize door and strode along the checkered tiled corridor to the kitchen.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
