vigor

American

[vig-er] / ˈvɪg ər /

especially British, vigour

noun

active strength or force.
healthy physical or mental energy or power; vitality.

Synonyms:

strength, force, drive
energetic activity; energy; intensity.

The economic recovery has given the country a new vigor.
force of healthy growth in any living matter or organism, as a plant.
active or effective force, especially legal validity.

vigor Idioms

see vim and vigor.

Other Word Forms

vigorless adjective

Etymology

Origin of vigor

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English vigo(u)r, from Anglo-French; Middle French vigeur, from Latin vigor “force, energy,” from vig(ēre) “to be vigorous, thrive” + -or -or ¹

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.

“Amongst Women” revolves around Michael Moran, a widowed farmer who rules his family with pitiless vigor.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 9, 2026

Seattle linebacker Ernest Jones IV stepped up to the microphone and with unvarnished vigor defended his quarterback.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 9, 2026

With AI stocks on the wane, and investors rotating into economically sensitive sectors such as energy, materials, and industrials with increasing vigor, “next week” is a long time in markets.

From Barron's • Feb. 4, 2026

If rapid dopamine bursts were responsible for movement vigor, changing dopamine levels at that exact moment should have altered how fast or forcefully the mice moved.

From Science Daily • Dec. 22, 2025

As was generally the pattern with nineteenth-century gentlemen scientists, Lyell came from a background of comfortable wealth and intellectual vigor.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023