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Glite Dictionary
to keep the conversation lively

to keep the conversation lively

3.7
Make the conversation interesting and fun so people want to talk more
  • idiom
translation icon : mantener la conversación animada
  • To keep the conversation lively, he shared funny anecdotes and interesting facts.

Examples

  • I was just trying to keep the conversation lively.

    The Big Chill (1983)

  • During the meeting, she made an effort to keep the conversation lively by asking engaging questions.

  • They used games and activities to keep the conversation lively at the dinner party.

Antonyms

to stifle
49 5.3

To hold back a feeling or reaction so it does not show

to bore
15 1.4

To make someone feel tired or not interested by being dull when you speak

How Lively

to entertain
226 2.0
to joke
476 1.0
to keep the conversation lively
3.7
small talk
  • Informal
65 2.1
to be quiet
231 1.0

Surface Forms

keep the conversation lively infinitive
keeping the conversation lively present participle
keeps the conversation lively third person singular
kept the conversation lively past
kept the conversation lively past participle

Morphology

keep + the + conversation + lively

The meaning is directly derivable from the parts: 'keep' (maintain), 'conversation' (dialogue), and 'lively' (energetic), so the phrase simply means to maintain the conversation in an energetic state. The syntactic pattern 'keep + NP + adjective' is productive and cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would readily infer the MWE's meaning.

Etymology

The phrase keep the conversation lively sees a conversation as something alive and keep as the act of feeding it so it stays lively. People add questions, stories, or jokes to give it 'life', so the talk stays 'interesting' and 'active'.