live
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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lives,
present (3rd person singular)
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lived,
past participle, past
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living
present participle
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to have life, as an organism; be alive; be capable of vital functions.
all things that live.
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to continue to have life; remain alive.
to live to a ripe old age.
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to continue in existence, operation, memory, etc.; last.
a book that lives in my memory.
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to maintain or support one's existence; provide for oneself.
to live on one's income.
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to feed or subsist (usually followed by on orupon ).
to live on rice and bananas.
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to dwell or reside (usually followed by in, at, etc.).
to live in a cottage.
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to pass life in a specified manner.
They lived happily ever after.
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to direct or regulate one's life.
to live by the golden rule.
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to experience or enjoy to the full.
At 40 she was just beginning to live.
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to cohabit (usually followed bywith ).
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to escape destruction or remain afloat, as a ship or aircraft.
verb (used with object)
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lives,
present (3rd person singular)
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lived,
past participle, past
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living
present participle
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to pass (life).
to live a life of ease.
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to practice, represent, or exhibit in one's life.
to live one's philosophy.
verb phrase
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live up to to live in accordance with (expectations or an ideal or standard); measure up to.
He never lived up to his father's vision of him.
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live down to live so as to allow (a mistake, disgrace, etc.) to be forgotten or forgiven.
She'll never live that crucial moment of failure down.
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live in / out to reside at or away from the place of one's employment, especially as a domestic servant.
Their butler lives in, but the maids live out.
idioms
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live high off / on the hog. hog.
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live well, to live comfortably.
They're not wealthy but they live well.
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live it up, to live in an extravagant or wild manner; pursue pleasure.
He started living it up after he got out of the army.
adjective
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It was the little gir's first time seeing live farm animals.
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of, relating to, or during the life of a living being.
Water forms about 50 to 80 percent of an animal's live weight.
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characterized by or indicating the presence of living creatures.
I stood still and listened to the live sounds of the forest.
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Informal. (of a person) energetic and quick to speak or act; animated, spirited, or vivacious.
The club members are a really live bunch.
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responsive to changing conditions, needs, etc., in an imaginative and proactive way.
I like this company—their approach is live and fresh.
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Informal. mentally, emotionally, and physically alive, often in a new way; invigorated, confident, and fully engaged.
After months of quarantine, I felt live and refreshed being exposed to places outside.
During pregame practice we were feeling live and ready for anything.
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made up of actual persons.
He has several studio albums but rarely performs before a live audience.
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(of a radio or television program, podcast, etc.) broadcast or released while happening or being performed; not prerecorded or taped.
I watched a live telecast of the royal wedding.
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burning or glowing.
We roasted our marshmallows over live coals in the firepit.
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being in play, as a baseball or football.
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(of ammunition)
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loaded or unexploded; ready to explode.
Watch out—that’s a live grenade!
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consisting of real bullets or shot, as opposed to rubber bullets or some other charge; explodable.
Security forces used tear gas and live ammunition to break up the riot.
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of current interest or importance, as a question or issue; generating much debate or discussion.
Sexual harassment in the military is still very much a live issue.
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Also alive electrically charged; carrying an electric current, especially if exposed.
Crews safely removed the live wire brought down by a falling tree.
On the subway line, the third rail is live.
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being highly resonant or reverberant, as an auditorium or concert hall.
Plants can absorb the echoes in acoustically live spaces like galleries and gymnasiums.
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having resilience or bounce.
The basketball was losing air rapidly and was barely live by the end of the game.
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moving or imparting motion; powered.
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vivid or bright, as color.
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still in use, or to be used, as type set up or copy for printing.
adverb
idioms
adjective
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(prenominal) showing the characteristics of life
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(usually prenominal) of, relating to, or abounding in life
the live weight of an animal
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(usually prenominal) of current interest; controversial
a live issue
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actual
a real live cowboy
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informal full of life and energy
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(of a coal, ember, etc) glowing or burning
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(esp of a volcano) not extinct
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loaded or capable of exploding
a live bomb
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radio television transmitted or present at the time of performance, rather than being a recording
a live show
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recorded in concert
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recorded in one studio take, without overdubs or splicing
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connected to a source of electric power
a live circuit
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(esp of a colour or tone) brilliant or splendid
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acoustically reverberant
a live studio
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sport (of a ball) in play
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(of rocks, ores, etc) not quarried or mined; native
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being in a state of motion or transmitting power; positively connected to a driving member
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printing
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(of copy) not yet having been set into type
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(of type that has been set) still in use
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adverb
verb
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to show the characteristics of life; be alive
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to remain alive or in existence
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to exist in a specified way
to live poorly
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to reside or dwell
to live in London
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(often foll by on) to continue or last
the pain still lives in her memory
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(usually foll by by) to order one's life (according to a certain philosophy, religion, etc)
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to support one's style of life; subsist
to live by writing
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(foll by with) to endure the effects (of a crime, mistake, etc)
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(foll by through) to experience and survive
he lived through the war
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(tr) to pass or spend (one's life, etc)
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to enjoy life to the full
he knows how to live
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(tr) to put into practice in one's daily life; express
he lives religion every day
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to refrain from interfering in others' lives; to be tolerant
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informal in one's sensitive or defenceless position
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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livesimple
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livessimple
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have livedperfect
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has livedperfect
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am livingprogressive
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are livingprogressive
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is livingprogressive
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have been livingperfect progressive
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has been livingperfect progressive
Past
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livedsimple
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had livedperfect
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was livingprogressive
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were livingprogressive
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had been livingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of live1
First recorded before 900; Middle English liven, Old English lifian, libban; cognate with Dutch leven, German leben, Old Norse lifa, Gothic liban
Origin of live2
First recorded in 1535–45; in 1930–35 live 2 for def. 8; shortened variant of alive, used attributively
Explanation
The verb live means remain alive. If you hope to live until you're 100, start eating vegetables. When live rhymes with give, it's a verb that has to do with existing — being or staying alive, or making your home in a particular place, like when you say, "I live on the planet Earth for the time being." When live rhymes with hive, it is an entirely different word with a very similar meaning, an adjective that means "not dead", or "living". So you could describe your two pet fish by saying, "The one on the left, floating upside down, is the dead fish, and the one on the right is the live fish."
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:
Because of those parasites and the extremely dark, murky environment in which the sharks live, scientists have long suspected that Greenland sharks may be functionally blind.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 23, 2026
Overall winners will be announced live on Vinny and Cate's BBC Radio Ulster show on Friday 25 September.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
The Dodgers star, who hasn’t pitched in a game since July 3, pitched a live batting practice session, throwing 30 pitches to also-rehabbing catcher Will Smith.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026
In my hometown, Seattle, our Paramount Theatre hosts Silent Movie Mondays quarterly, accompanying each screening with a live performance on the venue’s original Mighty Wurlitzer organ.
From Salon ● Aug. 22, 2026
“So, you still live above the family shop! And you work here in the laundry? Washing and ironing with all the others?”
From "The Red Car to Hollywood" by Jennie Liu
The latest findings reveal a very different function for the same hormone: protecting the liver through a previously unknown anti-inflammatory pathway.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
Researchers say that, taken together, the two studies could help shape future therapies that specifically address liver inflammation.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
Creatine is a natural compound in the body produced in the kidneys, liver and pancreas.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
Available starting at 8 p.m., the menu begins with a pillowy confection that straddles the line between sweet and savory: a Japanese milk-bread sandwich layered with duck liver, raspberry, blackberry and whipped cream.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
I remember we promised to bring him back some of his favorite food, beef liver, if we could find any.
From "Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH" by Robert C. O'Brien
But Cult is assaying the livest of stories.
From Time ● Sep. 5, 2017
It was just about the livest and jumpin'est opera yet turned out by a young composer in the U.S.
From Time Magazine Archive
"I'm the livest, kickingest person you ever saw," he fumed.
From Time Magazine Archive
I'm the livest, kickingest person you ever saw.
From Time Magazine Archive
Look upon him, Zayda!—Thou livest, then?—God be praised!
From Calavar or The Knight of The Conquest, A Romance of Mexico by Robert Montgomery Bird
“My job is my life,” says Sondheimer, 67, who has been the chronicler of the sporting lives of three generations of athletes from San Clemente to Santa Barbara.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
"We like to have a little delve into other people's lives – in particular where there's a shocking 'before and after', or they're able to watch the process," she says.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
“Apprenticeships are almost AI proof,” said Rankin, who lives near Manchester.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026
Sharma, who lives in San Francisco, has put on more weight in recent months.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026
That’s why he left his clan and lives on his own.’
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
Their extended family had lived in the UK for many years, the Palestinian Forum said.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
“I lived this when there wasn’t a way to brag about it.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026
“Although Guy came home in 2018, he still lived under the shadow of this wrongful conviction,” she said in a statement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026
Delicate tissues tend to disappear quickly after death, leaving major gaps in scientists' understanding of how these animals actually lived.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 21, 2026
Two other people lived in his home; they were his pretty, cheerful, innocent niece, about twenty, and his plump housekeeper, about forty, who was a good, friendly soul, with strong opinions about everything.
From "Adventures of Don Quixote" by Argentina Palacios
Around 2017, family leaders created the Wolf Pen Branch entity to bring order to a family tree that has many branches and has grown to about 180 living descendants, including spouses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
Raman contends that Bass’ signature program Inside Safe, which dismantles encampments and moves people living there into motels, hotels and interim housing, is overly expensive and unsustainable.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
With its top-tier schools, large residential lots and quiet living, generations of wealthy Chinese families have seen Arcadia as an ideal location to build a life in the United States.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2026
This meant that instead of enjoying those precious first weeks with her newborn, she was navigating motherhood while living with left-sided paralysis.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
If one of the living strays too close, the disembodied souls may try to possess it, or follow it home.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
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.
