enliven

English

Etymology

From en- +‎ life +‎ -en (intensifying verbal circumfix).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɛnˈlaɪvən/

  Rhymes: -aɪvən

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Verb

enliven (third-person singular simple present enlivens, present participle enlivening, simple past and past participle enlivened)

1. (archaic, transitive) To give life or spirit to; to revive or animate.
2. (transitive) To make more lively, cheerful or interesting.

   The game was much enlivened when both teams scored within five minutes of each other.

   • 1950 May, “A Tunisian Electric Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 335:

     Travel is enlivened not only by the mixed company of French, Berbers, Arabs, and descendants of the Mediterranean-Corsairs who sit together indiscriminately, but also by itinerant vendors of macaroons, sweetmeats and the like, who, as long as they have a travel ticket, ply their wares unhindered by the [ticket] collectors.

   • 2023 August 7, Kieran Pender, “Caitlin Foord and Hayley Raso fire Australia into quarter-finals with win over Denmark”, in The Guardian‎^[1]:

     The pace came off the match as the first half continued, with the occasional frenetic moment down the flanks enlivening what otherwise became a chess-like tactical battle.

Synonyms

• liven, liven up, vivify

Derived terms

• enlivener
• enlivenment

Translations

to make more lively

• Bulgarian: оживявам (bg) (oživjavam), съживявам (bg) (sǎživjavam)
• Czech: oživit
• Finnish: elävöittää (fi), vilkastuttaa (fi)
• Galician: arrizar, avivar (gl)
• Irish: beoigh
• Kabuverdianu: anima, animá
• Maori: whakawana, whakahihiko, whakahari
• Portuguese: avivar (pt)
• Romanian: înviora (ro)
• Russian: оживля́ть (ru) impf (oživljátʹ), оживи́ть (ru) pf (oživítʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: beothaich
• Spanish: avivar (es), amenizar (es)
• Swedish: liva upp

See also

• animate
• brighten
• cheer up
• invigorate
• quicken
• vitalize