alive

adjective

ə-ˈlīv 

1

: having life : not dead or inanimate

2

a

: still in existence, force, or operation : active

kept hope alive

b

: still active in competition with a chance of victory

must win to stay alive in the playoffs

3

: knowing or realizing the existence of something : sensitive

alive to the danger

4

: marked by alertness, energy, or briskness

his face came alive at the mention of food

5

: marked by much life, animation, or activity : swarming

streets alive with traffic

6

—used as an intensive following the noun

the proudest boy alive

aliveness noun

Synonyms

• animate
• breathing
• live
• living
• quick

Choose the Right Synonym for alive

aware, cognizant, conscious, sensible, alive, awake mean having knowledge of something.

aware implies vigilance in observing or alertness in drawing inferences from what one experiences.

aware of changes in climate

cognizant implies having special or certain knowledge as from firsthand sources.

not fully cognizant of the facts

conscious implies that one is focusing one's attention on something or is even preoccupied by it.

conscious that my heart was pounding

sensible implies direct or intuitive perceiving especially of intangibles or of emotional states or qualities.

sensible of a teacher's influence

alive adds to sensible the implication of acute sensitivity to something.

alive to the thrill of danger

awake implies that one has become alive to something and is on the alert.

a country always awake to the threat of invasion

Examples of alive in a Sentence

It feels great to be alive.

The patient was barely alive.

The sheriff was ordered to find the killer and bring him back alive.

He managed to stay alive for a week without any food.

The patient is being kept alive by artificial means.

an old tradition that is still alive

We need to keep hope alive.

The team needs to win tonight in order to stay alive in the play-offs.

I love to sail because it makes me feel so alive.

Recent Examples on the Web

For your green thumb, find tips for saving money on houseplants and how to keep your plants alive longer. —Jennifer Barger, Washington Post, 10 Apr. 2024

The Comets kept their hopes alive and got the game to overtime. —Nathan Dunn, Kansas City Star, 9 Apr. 2024

As of Friday, more than 100 have been released, and about 100 are believed to be still alive in captivity. —Sarah Lapidus, The Arizona Republic, 9 Apr. 2024

Tell that to the hostage families, who want a primary focus on rescuing the innocent captives, even as officials quietly opine that fewer than 60 of the 133 on the list are likely still alive. —Dan Raviv and Yossi Melman, TIME, 9 Apr. 2024

This was the last time investigators said League was seen on video alive. —Nicole Acosta, Peoplemag, 8 Apr. 2024

Hamas’s most senior leaders are still alive; several thousand Hamas fighters are still at large; and roughly half of the hostages taken on Oct. 7 are still in Gaza. —Patrick Kingsley, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2024

While no state has gone as far as Oregon, others have taken a harm reduction approach to drug use and possession − the concept of keeping people alive and as healthy as possible for a chance at recovery − while recognizing that punitive measures such as prison sentences haven’t solved the problem. —Sara Chernikoff, USA TODAY, 6 Apr. 2024

This is the season where the gang had to eat road dogs and fan out across highways in order to stay alive, having previously lived a good life inside the walled prison community. —Josh Wigler, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English on life, from on + līf life

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing alive

• alive and kicking
• alive and well
• bring (something) alive
• come alive
• burn alive
• alive to
• eat alive
• more dead than alive
• skin (someone) alive

Kids Definition

alive

adjective

ə-ˈlīv 

1

: having life : not dead

2

: still in existence, force, or operation : active

kept hope alive

3

: extremely aware or conscious : sensitive

alive to the beauty of life

4

: marked by much life or activity

blossoms alive with bees

aliveness noun

Medical Definition

alive

adjective

ə-ˈlīv 

: having life : not dead or inanimate