vital force

American  

noun

1. the force that animates and perpetuates living beings and organisms.

---

vital force British  

noun

1. (esp in early biological theory) a hypothetical force, independent of physical and chemical forces, regarded as being the causative factor of the evolution and development of living organisms

---

Example Sentences

While there will always be ways in which VOA can be streamlined and improved, it remains a vital force for good in the world — and a force for American products, policies and values.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2025

This constituency is a vital force in the Democratic Party, but its inclusion at the table of power remains a frustrating work in progress.

From Washington Post • Feb. 7, 2023

The Italian physicist Alessandro Volta rejected the idea of ‘animal electricity’, proposed by his rival Luigi Galvani as a vital force that animates organic matter.

From Nature • Mar. 29, 2020

The widespread belief called vitalism held that organic compounds were formed by a vital force present only in living organisms.

From Textbooks • Feb. 14, 2019

His knees buckled, his arms gave way beneath him, all vital force now conquered by the sea.

From "The Odyssey" by Homer