enliven
Americanverb (used with object)
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enlivens,
present (3rd person singular)
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enlivened,
past participle, past
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enlivening
present participle
verb
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to make active, vivacious, or spirited; invigorate
-
to make cheerful or bright; gladden or brighten
Synonym Usage
See cheer.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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enlivenernoun
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enlivenmentnoun
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enliveningadjective
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unenlivenedadjective
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unenliveningadjective
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enliveninglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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enlivensimple
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enlivenssimple
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have enlivenedperfect
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has enlivenedperfect
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am enliveningprogressive
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are enliveningprogressive
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is enliveningprogressive
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have been enliveningperfect progressive
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has been enliveningperfect progressive
Past
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enlivenedsimple
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had enlivenedperfect
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was enliveningprogressive
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were enliveningprogressive
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had been enliveningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of enliven
1625–35; obsolete enlive to give life to ( en- 1 + life ) + -en 1
Explanation
High school students who are throwing a dance in the gym might enliven it with balloons and streamers. In other words, they might try to cheer the room up. When you enliven something, you make it more lively, colorful, or exciting. Your friend who is the life of the party can probably be counted on to enliven the dullest gathering, and a sprinkle of curry powder can enliven a dish of plain roasted vegetables. The original meaning of enliven, from the seventeenth century, was literally "to bring to life," as when a doctor re-starts a patient's stopped heartbeat.
Vocabulary lists containing enliven
The Return of the King
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Encourage
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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.
See Examples For:
Danny Palumbo recommends the best snacks to enliven your cookout.
From Slate ● Sep. 4, 2026
Busby entrusted Mr. Mindte with 60 hours of cassette tapes of autobiographical ramblings, which enliven a narrative that gets dry in stretches.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
Mr. Pajak is appealing as the geeky, comic-book-obsessed Sam, while Ms. Bean does her best to enliven with her ferocious belt her rather bland concerned-mother role.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 28, 2026
It’s a neat conceptual challenge to visually enliven a famously blissed-out album like this onstage, and Air did it with exquisite panache on Sunday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2025
I can send them into others’ work, even enliven some inanimate objects, and once that’s done, the results are brilliant.
From "Shadowshaper" by Daniel José Older
If they threaten to bore, the authors’ jaunty tone enlivens the delivery.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 30, 2026
Elizabeth Harper’s lighting enlivens the dull palette, but I missed the surreal notes of the South Coast Repertory and Broadway stagings.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2025
A great glaze enrobes and enlivens the meat.
From Salon ● Apr. 18, 2025
Seattle Pride enlivens the city once again this June during the 49th annual Pride Month celebrations.
From Seattle Times ● Jun. 1, 2023
Fleming, seventy- one, a former mayor of Garden City, a short man who enlivens an unsensational appearance with rather conspicuous neckwear, resisted the assignment.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
After spending the last decade writing about his life and childhood, writing about what’s happening right now has clearly enlivened Bono’s storytelling and songwriting abilities.
From Salon ● Mar. 10, 2026
Johnson’s narrative is enlivened by its colorful cast, particularly the exuberant, and possibly fraudulent, Conte Querini of Venice, and the imperious and pretentious playwright Dorothy Merlin.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 2, 2026
Literature is enlivened as a result, and so, too, is our appreciation of it.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 26, 2025
Henry's "very gregarious" nature enlivened the darker days of last winter in the workshop.
From BBC ● Dec. 24, 2025
Killjoy style manuals tell writers to avoid alliteration, but good prose is enlivened with moments of poetry, like this line with its pleasing meter and its impish pairing of marital and medical.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Not surprisingly, massed strings play a defining role, with well-integrated keyboard parts enlivening the musical landscape.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 7, 2026
His cameos as Blazes Boylan, jitterbugging across the stage with the self-satisfied air of a country rake, were not just enlivening but renewing, capturing the character in a new idiom.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 8, 2025
Even so, it was a remarkable evening, enlivening orchestra and audience alike and becoming one for the Hollywood Bowl history books.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2024
Years ago, when Ms. Frazier had finished a clinical internship in a dimly lit, windowless office, she realized that she needed a “more enlivening setting” — for her clients and for herself.
From New York Times ● Feb. 5, 2024
“Of course I would rather be with Arthur. An educated man is always an enlivening companion.”
From "The Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson
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