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live

live

218 1.0
Full of life and energy
  • adjective
  • /lɪv/
translation icon : vivo
  • During our visit to the farm, we saw many live animals, including cows and sheep grazing peacefully.
  • live births
  • live vaccine
  • live poultry

Now probiotics actually contain live bacteria, OK.

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Examples

  • So do you have any live people?

  • Our trailer stood in a patch of live oaks, with gray moss hanging down.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • And still not a single conversation with a real live person.

  • Of women with at least one live birth, 14% had lost a child.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The engineers use live cells taken directly from the patient's body part to be replaced.

    Academic text (2012)
  • We've got a live one.

  • At one stage, I had a double cage with a live chicken and a stuffed rabbit.

    Academic text (2015)
  • Four of the patients had a history of contact with live chickens or visiting a live poultry market.

    Academic text (2013)
  • The rate for white mothers was 37.0 per 10,000 live births compared to 91.0 for black mothers.

    Academic text (1994)
  • The magician amazed the audience with a trick involving a live rabbit that appeared from a hat.

Synonyms

alive
vslive
1.0

Still present and not dead

emphasizes being full of life and active energy rather than simple existence
living
vslive
1.0

Still existing or active now, not dead

focuses on being full of life and energy rather than simple ongoing existence

Antonyms

1.0

Not alive or working, for example a battery with no power

28 3.4

Not moving and showing no signs of people or animals

Idioms

to live a lie
  • Informal
22 7.2

To hide the truth about yourself by pretending something else is true

16 4.2

To have the life you always wanted after hard work

11 7.4

Lead a life full of risk and excitement by doing dangerous things

9 4.8

To be very excited about something and always make it a main part of life

8 8.4

A couple who live together and have sex without being married, often seen as wrong by some people

To have a happy, full life and treat others well

5 8.2

Have a very comfortable life with lots of money

4 8.0

Not knowing things most people know

3 7.2

To depend completely on a belief or rule

To be less known or important because someone else is more famous

To live very simply and avoid extra comforts

People who use violence are likely to die violently

To stay constantly in someone's thoughts and annoy them

7.5

A shout showing support and wishing the king a long life

the live one
  • Informal
8.6

A person who makes others laugh and enjoy themselves

Compounds

28 1.6

Music played in front of people, not from a recording

real live
  • Informal
25 3.9

Present in person and not imaginary

live birth
  • Specialized
9 3.5

A baby born showing any sign of life

7 6.0

A large tree with green leaves all year that grows in the southern United States

2 3.4

A person or animal that is not dead

live wire
  • Informal
2 4.6

A person who is very lively and full of energy

live wire
  • Specialized
1 4.1

A wire that is carrying electric current and is dangerous to touch

1 2.3

Musicians play jazz music for people at a place not from a recording

live steam
  • Specialized
1 7.9

Steam at full pressure from a boiler used to run engines or machines

A medium-sized evergreen oak tree with leathery spiny-edged leaves that grows in dry canyons in southwestern US and northwestern Mexico

California live oak
  • Specialized
8.2

An evergreen oak tree with small, thick, spiny dark green leaves that grows on the coast of California

coast live oak
  • Specialized
8.3

A short bushy evergreen tree that grows along the west coast of North America with small thick spiny leaves

live axle
  • Specialized
6.5

A bar under a vehicle that sends engine power to the wheels

live load
  • Specialized
6.1

A weight on a structure that changes, like people or vehicles

live-and-die
  • Australian
9.9

A small bush from the tropics whose leaves fold when touched and that has sharp thorns

A small brightly colored fish that gives birth to young that can swim when born

A small hardy plant with thick leaves that forms low clusters and small purple and white flowers

interior live oak
  • Specialized
9.3

An evergreen tree with thick leaves that grows in dry hills of western North America

A music show you go to in person

A medicine taken by mouth that contains three weakened live polio viruses to protect against polio

An evergreen tree from the southern United States with wide, spreading branches and very hard wood

How Alive

vigorous
87 4.1
healthy
695 1.0
live
218 1.0
dying
1 2.4
dead
1.0

Surface Forms

live positive
liver comparative
livest superlative

Etymology

Live comes from an old English word life meaning 'life'. So to call someone or something live is to say it is full of 'life' and energy, which is why we use live for people or groups who seem energetic.