living

¹living

adj

Definition of LIVING

1

a : having life b : active, functioning <living languages>

2

a : exhibiting the life or motion of nature : natural <the wilderness is a living museum … of natural history — NEA Journal> b : ²live 2a

3

a : full of life or vigor b : true to life : vivid <televised in living color> c : suited for living <the living area>

4

: involving living persons

5

: very —used as an intensive <scared the living daylights out of me>

— liv·ing·ness noun

Examples of LIVING

1. I was taught to respect all living things.
2. His aunt is his closest living relative.
3. He's one of our greatest living authors.
4. It was the first time I had ever seen a living, breathing bear in the wild.

First Known Use of LIVING

before 12th century

Related to LIVING

Synonyms: alive, functional, functioning, going, live, active, on, operating, operational, operative, running, working

Antonyms: broken, dead, inactive, inoperative, kaput (also kaputt), nonactivated, nonfunctional, nonfunctioning, nonoperating, nonoperational, nonoperative

Related Words: effective, effectual; employable, operable, usable (also useable), viable, workable; performing, producing, productive, serving, useful, yielding; astir, bustling, busy, dynamic, flourishing, humming, roaring, thriving

Near Antonyms: deactivated, decommissioned; ineffective, ineffectual, useless; inoperable, unusable, unworkable; arrested, asleep, dormant, fallow, idle, inert, latent, lifeless, nonproductive, quiescent, sleepy, stagnating, unproductive, vegetating

see all synonyms and antonyms

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