Synonyms

improvised

American

[im-pruh-vahyzd] / ˈɪm prəˌvaɪzd /

adjective

made or said without previous preparation.

an improvised skit.

Synonyms:

unprepared, unrehearsed, unpremeditated

Related Words

See extemporaneous.

Other Word Forms

improvisedly adverb
unimprovised adjective
well-improvised adjective

Etymology

Origin of improvised

First recorded in 1830–40; improvise + -ed ²

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.

They move freely, obscuring borderlines between categories that once loomed like separate land masses: jazz and chamber music; acoustic and electric ensembles; songs and improvised forms.

From The Wall Street Journal

Reid lost both his legs and his right arm in 2009 from having stepped on an improvised explosive device in Helmand province, a Taliban stronghold which saw some of the conflict’s fiercest fighting.

From The Wall Street Journal

"There's a lot of decay and sadness as well as beauty," she says of her improvised creation.

From BBC

Then it might be improvised Shakespeare, and then it might be a live podcast.

From Los Angeles Times

“It was totally an improvised thing,” Jensen enthuses.

From Los Angeles Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023