Added 8 October 2026
alive
/əˈlaɪv/ adjective
In Latin: vīvus Wiktionary
adjective Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about alive at Wordnik → Where our words come from →
-
Possessing life.
the happiest person alive
-
(often followed by `with') full of life and spirit.
she was wonderfully alive for her age
-
Having life or vigor or spirit.
an animated and expressive face
Origin
From Middle English alyve, alive, alife, olive, olife, on live, on life, from Old English on līfe (“alive”, literally “in life" or "in (the) body”), from on (“on, in”) + līfe, dative singular of līf (“life”). In this sense, replaced Old English cwic (whence English quick). Equivalent to a- + life. Compare Dutch in leven (“alive”, literally “in life”), German am Leben (“alive”, literally “at life" or "at living”).
From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)