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Synonyms

joie de vivre

American  
[zhwaduh vee-vruh] / ʒwadə ˈvi vrə /

noun

French.

  1. a delight in being alive; keen, carefree enjoyment of living.

joie de vivre British  
/ ʒwa də vivrə /

noun

  1. joy of living; enjoyment of life; ebullience

"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
joie de vivre Cultural  

  1. A love of life. From French, meaning “joy of living.”

Etymology

Origin of joie de vivre

Literally, “joy of living”

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.

Organizers sought not only to remind the world that the Olympics were about joie de vivre, but also that the project didn’t need to be a $50 billion boondoggle.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 15, 2026

Adults walked around with the same smiles and joie de vivre as kids.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 23, 2025

Their appearance was a sensation – combining sheer technical skill with a thrilling joie de vivre, as they span their double basses, twirled their trumpets and clattered their cowbells, all while clad in Venezuelan-flag jackets.

From BBC • Aug. 22, 2025

And in so doing, we lose our enjoyment of the moment, our buoyancy, our joie de vivre.

From Salon • Sep. 12, 2024

He brought out her joie de vivre, a passion, an almost infectious laugh.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

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.