Definition of EBULLIENT

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Someone who is ebullient is bubbling over with enthusiasm, so it shouldn't be much of a surprise that the adjective ebullient derives from the Latin verb ebullire, which means "to bubble out." (The stem bullire is an ancestor of our word boil and derives from bulla, the Latin word for "bubble.") In its earliest known uses in English in the late 1500s, ebullient was used in the sense of "boiling" or "bubbling" that might have described a pot simmering on the stove. Only later did the word's meaning broaden to encompass emotional agitation (particularly of the exuberant kind) in addition to the tempestuous roiling of a boiling liquid.

Examples of ebullient in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Before either of these experiences, my acquaintanceship with eggplant was limited to tiny cans of Progresso caponata, whose ebullient, colorful exterior hinted at the flavor within. — Evan Kleiman, latimes.com, "Cucina Italiana: The joy of eggplant. Try making a timbale," 5 July 2018 Episodes lyrical, ebullient, searching and even wacky ensue as the forces merge, separate and regroup. — John Von Rhein, chicagotribune.com, "MusicNOW's resident composers wrap up their tenure with well-received parting gifts," 22 May 2018 This second part in the playwright's Aran Islands trilogy — sandwiched between The Cripple of Inishmaan and The Banshees of Inisheer — is a brutally ebullient farce that gleefully features several gory onstage murders. — Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, "'The Lieutenant of Inishmore': Theater Review," 5 July 2018 Singer and songwriter Whitney Rose may have been born and raised on Prince Edward Island in Canada, but her ebullient music suggests she’s easily settled into the rich scene of her adopted home of Austin, Texas. — Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader, "Whitney Rose enfolds bits of Tex-Mex and 60s pop into her lush, retro-tinged sound," 5 July 2018 The celebrations in the streets enacted that sense of possibility, with all the groups mixing together in an ebullient embrace, the French flag speaking the stories of players such as Zidane and Thuram as the true story of the country. — Laurent Dubois, The Atlantic, "France’s Ghosts Return for the World Cup," 14 July 2018 Musk wrote in an ebullient note to employees in response to increasing production. — Lucinda Shen, Fortune, "As Tesla Reaches Model 3 Production Targets, Short Sellers Have Lost $2.5 Billion," 2 July 2018 His ebullient Schützenstrasse Quarter complex, built on the site of the former death strip, completely overwrites the area’s deadly history. — Carolina A. Miranda, latimes.com, "What the dismantling of the Berlin Wall can teach us as Trump tries to build his wall," 21 June 2018 An ebullient woman named Hélène Alonso leads the Interactive Experiences, but even she is subdued just now. — Kevin Dupzyk, Popular Mechanics, "Unseen Oceans: How the American Museum of Natural History Builds a New Exhibit," 21 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ebullient.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.