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spir·it | \ ˈspir-ət 
\
\Definition of spirit
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : an animating or vital principle held to give life to physical organisms
2 : a supernatural being or essence: such as
b : soul sense 2a
d : a malevolent being that enters and possesses a human being
3 : temper or disposition of mind or outlook especially when vigorous or animated
in high spirits
4 : the immaterial intelligent or sentient part of a person
5a : the activating or essential principle influencing a person
acted in a spirit of helpfulness
b : an inclination, impulse, or tendency of a specified kind : mood
6a : a special attitude or frame of mind
the money-making spirit was for a time driven back— J. A. Froude
b : the feeling, quality, or disposition characterizing something
undertaken in a spirit of fun
7 : a lively or brisk quality in a person or a person's actions
8 : a person having a character or disposition of a specified nature
9 : a mental disposition characterized by firmness or assertiveness
denied the charge with spirit
10a : distillate sense 1: such as
(1) : the liquid containing ethanol and water that is distilled from an alcoholic liquid or mash
—often used in plural
(2) : any of various volatile liquids obtained by distillation or cracking (as of petroleum, shale, or wood)
—often used in plural
b : a usually volatile organic solvent (such as an alcohol, ester, or hydrocarbon)
11a : prevailing tone or tendency
spirit of the age
b : general intent or real meaning
spirit of the law
12 : an alcoholic solution of a volatile substance
spirit of camphor
13 : enthusiastic loyalty
school spirit
spirit
verbspirited; spiriting; spirits
Definition of spirit (Entry 2 of 2)
1 : to infuse with spirit especially : animate hope and apprehension of feasibleness spirits all industry — John Goodman
2 : to carry off usually secretly or mysteriously
was hustled into a … motorcar and spirited off to the country— W. L. Shirer
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Examples of spirit in a Sentence
Noun
the spirits of my ancestors
Some religions believe that the same spirit is reincarnated many times in different bodies.
Yoga is very healthy for both body and spirit.
We will all miss her generous spirit.
My father was a proud spirit. Verb
The singer was spirited away in a limousine after the show.
Some of the funds had been spirited away to other accounts.
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Recent Examples on the Web: Noun His spirit soared high above the track and everything here.
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Joseph Goodman | Jgoodman@al.com, al, "Historic day for Bubba Wallace pushes NASCAR forward," 23 June 2020 The Lover singer gave her employees the day off in the spirit of that sentiment.
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Nick Romano, EW.com, "Taylor Swift says Juneteenth should be national holiday, gives employees day off," 19 June 2020 In the spirit of what Juneteenth stands for, Kai is choosing freedom.
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Anika Reed, USA TODAY, "'Miss Juneteenth' is the American Dream deferred: The movie's most poignant moments," 19 June 2020 In the spirit of safety, event participants are highly encouraged to wear a face mask.
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Mary Jane Brewer, cleveland, "Main Street Medina welcomes summer to the square," 18 June 2020 Then, in the spirit of Theodore Roosevelt, a burgeoning movement of hunters banned together in defense of the bear.
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Bjorn Dihle, Outdoor Life, "The Roadless Rule in the Tongass National Forest is Vital for Both Hunters and Brown Bears," 16 June 2020 Both were opened in the spirit of the Sunshine Policy and later shut due to political turmoil.
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Jon Herskovitz, Bloomberg.com, "Kim Jong Un Raises Pressure on South Korea to Split With Trump," 11 June 2020 Decker again crafts a dizzying exploration of identity, this time with a movie that is part biopic of author Shirley Jackson, part creation in the spirit of Jackson’s work.
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Mark Olsenstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, "Indie Focus: Elisabeth Moss invokes ‘Shirley’ to fiery life," 5 June 2020 All of the Scottsdale candidates decried the looting as opportunistic, and not in the spirit of protests that have exploded around the country in response to Floyd's death at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer.
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Lorraine Longhi, azcentral, "Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane and mayoral candidates weigh in on violent protests at Scottsdale Fashion Square," 3 June 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Verb Mark McGwire hit a pair of two-run homers off Stewart to give Southern California a 6-3 lead, but Henderson spirited a comeback for the Northern Californians, who pulled out a 7-6 victory at Angel Stadium.
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John Shea, SFChronicle.com, "I-5 Series, Game 4: Rickey Henderson bails out Dave Stewart, NorCal wins 7-6," 30 May 2020 However, Vanya's siblings spirit the entire family off to some great unknown time, all in the hopes of fixing Vanya and saving earth.
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Ariana Romero, refinery29.com, "Will There Be An Umbrella Academy Season 2? Because Its Team Has Some Ideas," 19 May 2020 But his father was Jewish, and the rise of Hitler put the family in jeopardy; in 1939 his grandmother arranged for him to be sent to England in the Kindertransport program, which spirited thousands of children out of Germany.
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Neil Genzlinger, New York Times, "Wolf Kahn, Who Painted Vibrant Landscapes, Is Dead at 92," 24 Mar. 2020 Zharkova engaged in a spirited back-and-forth with Rice that generated more heat than light.
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Scott K. Johnson, Ars Technica, "Paper that claimed the Sun caused global warming gets retracted," 6 Mar. 2020 But the forces of Heaven do the lifting, the heavy work, the spiriting away, the catching up of the body in the air.
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New York Times, "‘Something That May Shock and Discredit You,’ by Daniel Mallory Ortberg: An Excerpt," 11 Feb. 2020 Corrupt magistrates, viewing black people as property without rights, quickly spirited the accused off for sale into slavery.
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Graham Hodges, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "David Ruggles was a friend to Frederick Douglass, the first full-time black activist and a lead conductor on the Underground Railroad," 14 Feb. 2020 Guaidó two weeks ago defied a government imposed travel ban, spiriting out of Venezuela into Colombia.
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Washington Post, "Trump skips Miami rally, dashing hopes of Venezuelan opposition leader Guaidó," 1 Feb. 2020 After McDaniels signed off on him, Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Josh Gattis spirited off to Long Island to meet Villari and assess his skill level.
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Rainer Sabin, Detroit Free Press, "Meet Michigan football's next 'total package' QB, a diamond in the Long Island rough," 12 Jan. 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'spirit.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for spirit
spirit
nounEnglish Language Learners Definition of spirit
(Entry 1 of 2)
: the force within a person that is believed to give the body life, energy, and power
: the inner quality or nature of a person
: a person
spirit
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of spirit (Entry 2 of 2)
: to carry (someone or something) away secretly
See the full definition for spirit in the English Language Learners Dictionary
spirit
nounspir·it | \ ˈspir-ət \
\Kids Definition of spirit
(Entry 1 of 2)
1 : mood entry 1 I'm in good spirits today.
2 : a being (as a ghost) whose existence cannot be explained
3 : a lively or brisk quality
They sang with spirit.
4 : a force within a human being thought to give the body life, energy, and power : soul
5 : an attitude or feeling
It was said in a spirit of fun.
6 : person sense 1 She was a bold spirit.
7 : an alcoholic liquor
—usually used in pl.
8 capitalized : God in the form of a spirit in Christianity
9 spirits plural : a solution in alcohol
spirits of camphor
10 : real meaning or intention
the spirit of the law
spirit
verbspirited; spiriting
Kids Definition of spirit (Entry 2 of 2)
: to carry off secretly or mysteriously
The jewels were spirited out of the country.
spirit
nounspir·it | \ ˈspir-ət \
\Medical Definition of spirit
1a : distillate especially : the liquid containing ethyl alcohol and water that is distilled from an alcoholic liquid or mash —often used in plural
b : a usually volatile organic solvent (as an alcohol, ester, or hydrocarbon)
2 : an alcoholic solution of a volatile substance
spirit of camphor
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Time Traveler for spirit
The first known use of spirit was in the 13th century
See more words from the same century