Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
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.

See Examples For:

King says she gets the energy to wake before dawn and go out at least a couple of nights every week from her natural joie de vivre.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026

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

Solid, monumental like his grandfathers, but with a joie de vivre and an irresistible good humor that they did not have, Aureliano Segundo scarcely had time to look after his animals.

From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

Get a word


Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Just like flashcards, but way more fun

Don't take our word for it. Leave the boring studying behind and join VocabTrainer today. You'll learn even faster and never look back.

Take me to Vocabulary.com