Adjacent Words

Alive definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

ALI'VE, a.
1. Having life, in opposition to dead; living; being in a state in which the organs perform their functions, and the fluids move, whether in animals or vegetables; as, the man or plant is alive.
2. In a state of action; unextinguished; undestroyed; unexpired; in force or operation; as, keep the process alive.
3. Cheerful; sprightly; lively; full of alacrity; as, the company were all alive.
4. Susceptible; easily impressed; having lively feelings, as when the mind is solicitous about some event; as, one is alive to whatever is interesting to a friend.
5. Exhibiting motion or moving bodies in great numbers.
The city was all alive, when the General entered.
6. In a scriptural sense, regenerated; born again.
For this my son was dead and is alive. Luke 15.
[This adjective always follows the noun which it qualifies.]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: possessing life; "the happiest person alive"; "the nerve is alive"; "doctors are working hard to keep him alive"; "burned alive"; "a live canary" [syn: alive, live] [ant: dead]
2: (often followed by `with') full of life and spirit; "she was wonderfully alive for her age"; "a face alive with mischief"
3: having life or vigor or spirit; "an animated and expressive face"; "animated conversation"; "became very animated when he heard the good news" [syn: animated, alive] [ant: unanimated]
4: (followed by `to' or `of') aware of; "is alive to the moods of others"
5: in operation; "keep hope alive"; "the tradition was still alive"; "an active tradition" [syn: active, alive]
6: mentally perceptive and responsive;"an alert mind"; "alert to the problems"; "alive to what is going on"; "awake to the dangers of her situation"; "was now awake to the reality of his predicament" [syn: alert, alive, awake]
7: capable of erupting; "a live volcano"; "the volcano is very much alive" [syn: alive, live]

Merriam Webster's

adjective Etymology: Middle English, from Old English on life, from on + l?f life Date: before 12th century 1. having life ; not dead or inanimate 2. a. still in existence, force, or operation ; active <kept hope alive> b. still active in competition with a chance of victory <must win to stay alive in the playoffs> 3. knowing or realizing the existence of ; sensitive <alive to the danger> 4. marked by alertness, energy, or briskness <his face came alive at the mention of food> 5. marked by much life, animation, or activity ; swarming <streets alive with traffic> 6. — used as an intensive following the noun <the proudest boy alive> Synonyms: see aware • aliveness noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

adj. (usu. predic.) 1 (of a person, animal, plant, etc.) living, not dead. 2 a (of a thing) existing; continuing; in operation or action (kept his interest alive). b under discussion; provoking interest (the topic is still very much alive today). 3 (of a person or animal) lively, active. 4 charged with an electric current; connected to a source of electricity. 5 (foll. by to) aware of; alert or responsive to. 6 (foll. by with) a swarming or teeming with. b full of. Phrases and idioms: alive and kicking colloq. very active; lively. alive and well still alive or active (esp. despite contrary assumptions or rumours). Derivatives: aliveness n. Etymology: OE on life (as A(2), LIFE)

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Alive A*live", a. [OE. on live, AS. on l[=i]fe in life; l[=i]fe being dat. of l[=i]f life. See Life, and cf. Live, a.] 1. Having life, in opposition to dead; living; being in a state in which the organs perform their functions; as, an animal or a plant which is alive. 2. In a state of action; in force or operation; unextinguished; unexpired; existent; as, to keep the fire alive; to keep the affections alive. 3. Exhibiting the activity and motion of many living beings; swarming; thronged. The Boyne, for a quarter of a mile, was alive with muskets and green boughs. --Macaulay. 4. Sprightly; lively; brisk. --Richardson. 5. Having susceptibility; easily impressed; having lively feelings, as opposed to apathy; sensitive. Tremblingly alive to nature's laws. --Falconer. 6. Of all living (by way of emphasis). Northumberland was the proudest man alive. --Clarendon. Note: Used colloquially as an intensive; as, man alive! Note: Alive always follows the noun which it qualifies.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English. 1. If people or animals are alive, they are not dead. She does not know if he is alive or dead... They kept her alive on a life support machine. ? dead ADJ: v-link ADJ, keep n ADJ 2. If you say that someone seems alive, you mean that they seem to be very lively and to enjoy everything that they do. Our relationship made me feel more alive... ADJ: usu v-link ADJ 3. If an activity, organization, or situation is alive, it continues to exist or function. The big factories are trying to stay alive by cutting costs... Both communities have a tradition of keeping history alive. ? dead ADJ: v-link ADJ, keep n ADJ 4. If a place is alive with something, there are a lot of people or things there and it seems busy or exciting. The river was alive with birds... ADJ: v-link ADJ, usu ADJ with n 5. If people, places, or events come alive, they start to be lively again after a quiet period. If someone or something brings them alive, they cause them to come alive. The doctor's voice had come alive and his small eyes shone. PHRASE: V inflects 6. If a story or description comes alive, it becomes interesting, lively, or realistic. If someone or something brings it alive, they make it seem more interesting, lively, or realistic. She made history come alive with tales from her own memories... PHRASE: V inflects 7. If you say that someone or something is alive and kicking, you are emphasizing not only that they continue to survive, but also that they are very active. ...worries that the secret police may still be alive and kicking. PHRASE: v-link PHR [emphasis] 8. If you say that someone or something is alive and well, you are emphasizing that they continue to survive. A man who went missing yesterday during a blizzard has been found alive and well. PHRASE: v-link PHR [emphasis]

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

a-liv' (chai, "living"; zao, "to live," anazao, "to live again"): These Hebrew and Greek originals are the chief terms for life in both Testaments. They cover all life, including soul and spirit, although primarily referring to physical vitality. Striking examples may be cited: "Is your father yet alive?" (Ge 43:7); "To whom he also showed himself alive" (Ac 1:3). Often used of God: "the living God" (Jos 3:10); also of the resurrection life: "In Christ shall all be made alive" (1Co 15:22); of the soul's regenerate life: "Reckon .... yourselves .... alive unto God," "as those that are alive from the dead" (Ro 6:11:13 the King James Version). The term is vital with the creative energy of God; the healing, redemptive, resurrection life of Christ; the renewing and recreative power of the Holy Spirit. Dwight M. Pratt

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. 1. Living, breathing, live, not dead, in life, above ground, quick. 2. Sensitive, susceptible, with keen perceptions. 3. Active, in force, in existence, in operation, operative. 4. Cheerful, sprightly, lively, joyous, brisk. See alert.

Moby Thesaurus

abounding, aboveground, active, activist, activistic, agile, alert, alive and kicking, alive to, alive with, among the living, animate, animated, apprehensive, around, astir, attentive, au courant, awake, aware of, bouncing, bouncy, breathing, breezy, bright, brisk, bristling, bubbly, bursting, bustling, buzzing, capable of life, chipper, clear-sighted, clear-witted, clearheaded, cognizant, cognizant of, conscious, conscious of, crawling, crowded, crowding, dynamic, ebullient, effervescent, eidetic, endowed with life, enduring, energetic, enlivened, existent, existing, filled, flush, fresh, frisky, full, full of go, full of life, full of pep, functioning, green, humming, in profusion, in the flesh, inspirited, instinct with life, intelligent, jam-packed, jammed, jumping, keen, kept in remembrance, knowing, lasting, lavish, live, lively, living, long-lived, lousy, mercurial, militant, nimble, on the, on the alert, on the ball, on the job, operative, overflowing, packed, peppy, perky, pert, populous, prodigal, profuse, proliferating, prolific, prompt, qui vive, quick, quick-witted, quicksilver, ready, recalled, recollected, remembered, replete, retained, rife, running, sensible, sensitive to, sentient, sharp, sleepless, smacking, smart, snappy, spanking, spirited, sprightly, spry, studded, superabundant, swarming, teeming, tenacious of life, thick, thick as hail, thick with, thick-coming, thronged, thronging, unblinking, unforgotten, unnodding, unsleeping, unwinking, verdant, very much alive, viable, vigilant, vigorous, vital, vivacious, vivid, vivified, wakeful, watchful, wide-awake, witting, working, zingy, zoetic