spirited
Americanadjective
adjective
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displaying animation, vigour, or liveliness
-
(in combination) characterized by mood, temper, or disposition as specified
high-spirited
public-spirited
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of spirited
Explanation
Someone who's spirited is lively or enthusiastic. It can be challenging to babysit a bunch of spirited four-year-olds, but it's also entertaining. You can also call a spirited person energetic, animated, or spunky. Spirited people are often determined, too, like a spirited activist for animal rights or a spirited defender of free school lunches. Long ago, this adjective was also used to mean "possessed by a spirit or ghost." Today's sense of spirited comes from the original meaning of the verb spirit, "to make more active."
Vocabulary lists containing spirited
This Week in Words: March 9 - 15, 2019
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The Red Pencil
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Put on a Bold Face: Synonyms for "Brave"
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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.
The supposed victim, an annoying little girl who is perpetually at war with her father, begs to be spirited away by a woman she meets outside a fast-food joint.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
Some of it, probably, was warranted or in the spirited mission of liberty, as some will undoubtedly argue, but far from all of it.
From Salon ● Jul. 4, 2026
Mexico’s defense held off a spirited final push by South Korea, earning a 1-0 win to advance to the knockout round.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
Travelers will find world-famous barbecue, a thriving arts scene and spirited sports bars to watch the games.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 4, 2026
She’d spirited Sefia away into the woods as soon as she’d shown up, sobbing and bedraggled, at Nin’s door.
From "The Reader" by Traci Chee
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.
