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lively

[lahyv-lee]
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adjective, live·li·er, live·li·est.
  1. full or suggestive of life or vital energy; active, vigorous, or brisk: a lively discussion.
  2. animated, spirited, vivacious, or sprightly: a lively tune; a lively wit.
  3. eventful, stirring, or exciting: The opposition gave us a lively time.
  4. bustling with activity; astir: The marketplace was lively with vendors.
  5. strong, keen, or distinct; vivid: a lively recollection.
  6. striking, telling, or effective, as an expression or instance.
  7. vivid or bright, as color or light: a lively pink.
  8. sparkling, as wines.
  9. fresh or invigorating, as air: a lively breeze.
  10. rebounding quickly; springing back; resilient: a lively tennis ball.
  11. riding the sea buoyantly, as a ship.
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adverb
  1. with briskness, vigor, or animation; briskly: to step lively.
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Origin of lively

before 1000; Middle English; Old English līflīc vital. See life, -ly
Related formslive·li·ly, adverblive·li·ness, nouno·ver·live·li·ness, nouno·ver·live·ly, adjectiveun·live·li·ness, nounun·live·ly, adjective, adverb

Synonyms

See more synonyms for lively on Thesaurus.com
1. alert, spry, nimble, agile, quick, pert. 2. gay, buoyant. 5. forceful, clear. 7. brilliant, clear, glowing.

Antonyms

1. inactive, torpid. 2. dull. 5. weak. 7. dim.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for livelier

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • The American's heart beat a livelier tempo at the suggestion.

    The Black Bag

    Louis Joseph Vance

  • Sydney was none the livelier and none the soberer for so much application.

    A Tale of Two Cities

    Charles Dickens

  • Hazarding the looking-glass, she thought that she could detect a livelier iris too.

    Love and Lucy

    Maurice Henry Hewlett

  • "Tell me some of your plans," said she, with a livelier interest than she had yet shown.

  • Petrea's hands bled in consequence of this operation, but that only made her the livelier.

    The Home

    Fredrika Bremer

British Dictionary definitions for livelier

lively

adjective -lier or -liest
  1. full of life or vigour
  2. vivacious or animated, esp when in company
  3. busy; eventful
  4. characterized by mental or emotional intensity; vivid
  5. having a striking effect on the mind or senses
  6. refreshinga lively breeze
  7. springy or bouncy or encouraging springinessa lively ball
  8. (of a boat or ship) readily responsive to the helm
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adverb Also: 'livelily
  1. in a brisk mannerstep lively
  2. look lively (interjection) make haste
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Derived Formsliveliness, noun
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

Word Origin and History for livelier

lively

adj.

Old English liflic "living, existing," literally "life-like;" from life + -ly (2). Sense of "active, energetic" developed by early 13c., from notion "full of life."

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper