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
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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:
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
Michaela’s verve for life helps to enliven Francesca, especially after John’s death.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026
His impact was almost instant, first going past the outside edge of Jaiswal to enliven the crowd.
From BBC ● Jul. 11, 2025
If you’re looking to enliven jarred sauce or some plain tomato puree, you can never go wrong with enriching the latent flavors.
From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2025
Some of the village-folk had lit a large fire, just to enliven things, and also because it was one of the things forbidden by the Chief.
From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Praising Mr. Corden, our critic said “he enlivens an already lively evening by giving us a peerless example of the fine art of comic acting.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 14, 2025
A great glaze enrobes and enlivens the meat.
From Salon ● Apr. 18, 2025
Public art enlivens the entrances, notably the metal cutout sculpture “Dragon and Phoenix” on the trench walls of Spring District Station.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 29, 2024
Sharp stylization enlivens a distinctly feminist perspective throughout.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 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
As we near the end we get to a full account of the game itself, enlivened by quotes the players gave after the fact, and followed by chronicles of what befell the participants after 1933.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
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
It is inescapable that people have most focused on Frank’s sculptural, curvilinear forms, his luminous exterior surfaces, and yet what I find most profound about his architecture is how he enchanted and enlivened space.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025
The closing stages were enlivened by raised tensions rather than any scoreboard jeopardy.
From BBC ● Nov. 1, 2025
Mrs. Mortimer Merriman and Mrs. James Highcamp, who were there with Alcée Arobin, had joined them and had enlivened the hours in a fashion that warmed him to think of.
From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin
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
In Guillermo Cienfuegos’ enlivening, if at times unsteady, production at A Noise Within, the role is played by Ann Noble, who forgoes the outdated hunchback but adopts a seething, slithering, perversely seductive aura of menace.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 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
What interests Rockwell are the lives in the apartments and how these lives joyfully and chaotically flow back and forth into the streets, pumping energy into the city, enlivening and sustaining it.
From New York Times ● Mar. 30, 2023
“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
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.
