revive
Americanverb (used with object)
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revives,
present (3rd person singular)
-
revived,
past participle, past
-
reviving
present participle
-
to activate, set in motion, or take up again; renew.
to revive old feuds.
- Synonyms:
- reactivate
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to restore to life or consciousness.
We revived him with artificial respiration.
- Synonyms:
- resuscitate, reanimate, revitalize
- Antonyms:
- kill
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to put on or show (an old play or motion picture) again.
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to make operative or valid again.
- Synonyms:
- reactivate
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to bring back into notice, use, or currency.
to revive a subject of discussion.
-
to quicken or renew in the mind; bring back.
to revive memories.
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to reanimate or cheer (the spirit, heart, etc., or a person).
-
Chemistry. to restore or reduce to the natural or uncombined state, as a metal.
verb (used without object)
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revives,
present (3rd person singular)
-
revived,
past participle, past
-
reviving
present participle
-
to return to life, consciousness, vigor, strength, or a flourishing condition.
-
to recover from financial depression.
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to be quickened, restored, or renewed, as hope, confidence, suspicions, or memories.
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to return to notice, use, or currency, as a subject, practice, or doctrine.
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to become operative or valid again.
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Chemistry. to recover the natural or uncombined state, as a metal.
verb
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to bring or be brought back to life, consciousness, or strength; resuscitate or be resuscitated
revived by a drop of whisky
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to give or assume new vitality; flourish again or cause to flourish again
-
to make or become operative or active again
the youth movement was revived
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to bring or come into use or currency again
to revive a language
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(tr) to take up again
he revived his old hobby
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to bring or come back to mind
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(tr) theatre to mount a new production of (an old play)
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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revivabilitynoun
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revivernoun
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revivableadjective
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revivingadjective
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unrevivableadjective
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unrevivedadjective
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revivablyadverb
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revivinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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revivesimple
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revivessimple
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have revivedperfect
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has revivedperfect
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am revivingprogressive
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are revivingprogressive
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is revivingprogressive
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have been revivingperfect progressive
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has been revivingperfect progressive
Past
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revivedsimple
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had revivedperfect
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was revivingprogressive
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were revivingprogressive
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had been revivingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of revive
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English reviven, from Latin revīvere “to live again,” from re- re- + vīvere “to live” ( cf. vital)
Explanation
To revive something is to provide it with new energy or life, like when you revive a drooping plant by watering it, or when you revive a boring party by breaking out the karaoke machine. Revive comes from the Latin roots re-, meaning “again,” and vivere, meaning “to live.” So, the word revive means “live again.” While the possibility of bringing folks back from the dead isn’t something we’re qualified to comment on, we will note that revive can be used in a sense that’s very close to its literal meaning; specifically, revive can mean “cause someone to regain consciousness.”
Vocabulary lists containing revive
A Long Walk to Water
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Out of the Dust
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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.
See Examples For:
Both also said they wanted to revive internal programs the outgoing city attorney had scuttled, such as neighborhood prosecutors and specialized units for handing child abuse and domestic violence.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026
Staff continued with CPR and also used a defibrillator in their efforts to revive her.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 3, 2026
Private-equity firms are targeting struggling U.S. restaurant chains to revive them away from public-market scrutiny.
From Barron's ● Oct. 30, 2026
Meanwhile, diplomatic efforts to revive negotiations between Washington and Tehran continued.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
Instead, we knew our affection would revive when we saw one another on the dock the following June, salt spray in the air, pale sun glinting off the water.
From "We Were Liars" by E. Lockhart
Weakness in banks and chip stocks raises the stakes for tech earnings as hotter inflation revives concerns about Federal Reserve rate hikes.
From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026
Hamilton's position on the front row revives memories of their bitter title battle in 2021, when the seven-time champion was at Mercedes, and whets appetites for the grand prix on Sunday.
From BBC ● Oct. 3, 2026
A documentary revives the tumultuous but groundbreaking voyage of an all-women America’s Cup team.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
The effort to establish a West Coast coal export terminal revives a fight that has played out repeatedly in recent years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2026
We are free at last, but here, just at the moment the gate swings open, and we can fly the coop, Tía Carmen's love revives our old homesickness.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
Both want to see Clifton’s revived but have yet to come to an agreement.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 6, 2026
The company revived several dances to enchanting effect for its most recent Lincoln Center season, including works by Frederick Ashton, George Balanchine and Kyle Abraham.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 2, 2026
The prime minister revived the National Economic Council over the summer to encourage greater collaboration between the nations and regions.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
Tech firms rallied Tuesday following a healthy run-up on Wall Street as traders welcomed AI titan Anthropic's IPO filing that revived optimism over the sector after stuttering in the second half of the year.
From Barron's ● Oct. 27, 2026
And everytime I paused to rest, the outrage revived and I went off again.
From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison
The outlook for reviving the deadlocked talks remains bleak.
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
The incident follows a recent security breach at crypto exchange BitGet, reviving fears about digital safety as more real-world assets move on-chain.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2026
A producer named Robert L Justman was intent on reviving the Star Trek franchise, and was looking for a successor to William Shatner's legendary James T Kirk.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
Shares of Boeing went into a tailspin Tuesday after the aerospace and defense giant told Wall Street it will come up short of delivery targets for crucial commercial jets, reviving worries about its turnaround.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 27, 2026
“Oh, Mr. de Winter,” she said, “there is something I’ve been wanting to ask you for ages. Now tell me, is there any chance of you reviving the Manderley fancy dress ball?”
From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
