as in impromptu
made or done without previous thought or preparation
not bad for an ad-lib comedy routine
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in improvisation
something that is performed, made, or done without preparation
you would never suspect that that stirring speech was an ad-lib
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to improvise
to perform, make, or do without preparation
had to ad-lib constructing a piñata because she'd never actually seen it being done
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ad-lib
Sabrina Park, Harper's BAZAAR, 15 Mar. 2023
Michael Saponara, Billboard, 24 Sep. 2025
Hynes’s grateful curatorial instincts (emboldened by appearances from everyone from Daniel Caesar to an ad-lib-lilting Zadie Smith) only further the contemplative-exuberance aesthetic, making Essex Honey his most quietly explosive album.
—Will Dukes, Rolling Stone, 2 Sep. 2025
Being able to ad-lib was such a steep learning curve for me.
—Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 6 Apr. 2025
During their jam session with Bad Bunny, the group was able to ad-lib an element unique to their hometown: the tale of Jacinto, a farmer who is dragged by his cow into a ocean blowhole, famously known as Jacinto’s pit cave.
—Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2025
First of all, Megan gets to ad-lib every night and comes up with really funny lines every single night.
—Juan A. Ramírez, Vogue, 22 Nov. 2024
But little did Pearson know, Key would one-up these references with an ad-lib.
—Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Oct. 2024
According to Patton Oswalt, the cast would ad-lib jokes for Reynolds to say to Blade in Snipes’s absence.
—Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2024
Adjective
At the same time, more ad-lib moments are often expected onstage, bound to keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
—Sabrina Park, Harper's BAZAAR, 15 Mar. 2023
Verb
Between the ad-libs to start the cut and rapping over drill 808s mixed with Jersey club, Cardi appears to be taking a page out of the Ice Spice playbook.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 24 Sep. 2025
Hynes’s grateful curatorial instincts (emboldened by appearances from everyone from Daniel Caesar to an ad-lib-lilting Zadie Smith) only further the contemplative-exuberance aesthetic, making Essex Honey his most quietly explosive album.
—Will Dukes, Rolling Stone, 2 Sep. 2025
Being able to ad-lib was such a steep learning curve for me.
—Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 6 Apr. 2025
During their jam session with Bad Bunny, the group was able to ad-lib an element unique to their hometown: the tale of Jacinto, a farmer who is dragged by his cow into a ocean blowhole, famously known as Jacinto’s pit cave.
—Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 18 Jan. 2025
First of all, Megan gets to ad-lib every night and comes up with really funny lines every single night.
—Juan A. Ramírez, Vogue, 22 Nov. 2024
But little did Pearson know, Key would one-up these references with an ad-lib.
—Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Oct. 2024
According to Patton Oswalt, the cast would ad-lib jokes for Reynolds to say to Blade in Snipes’s absence.
—Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ad-lib
Adjective
-
All students must complete an impromptu essay, which involves reading a short text and responding to a question about it within a two-hour time limit.—
Rory Linnane,
jsonline.com,
3 Oct. 2025
-
In public, Mark Kerr speaks amiably about his trainer turned rival and even takes him along for a rowdy impromptu meet-and-greet, but the lack of friction comes off less as a sign of his unflappability than of Safdie’s indifference to probing a friendship beyond buddy-comedy depth.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Blending fiction, improvisation, and documentary-style shooting on the streets of Madrid, the film delves into the quiet intimacy of daily life, revealing how fragility, solitude and humor coexist in those attempting to rebuild themselves far from home.—
Anna Marie de la Fuente,
Variety,
1 Oct. 2025
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The Zoolander star and Severance boss explores how Jerry Stiller and Meara as a comedy powerhouse duo managed to raise a showbiz family as the lines between their creativity and improvisation on stage and at home constantly blurred.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The series focuses on the Mossos’ investigative team and the escapees, whose plan begins to unravel, forcing them to improvise.—
Anna Marie de la Fuente,
Variety,
30 Sep. 2025
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The premise is just there to set up jokes about Chad Powers’ weird looks and absurd backstory (Russ likes to improvise answers, despite being terrible at it), while establishing a unique starting point for a conventional sports redemption story.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
29 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The film, shot in the sort of seemingly improvisational, realistic style championed by John Cassavetes, may be too raw for mainstream consumption, but deservingly snagged the festival’s award for Best First Feature.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Oct. 2025
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By comparison, campaign two felt more scattered and improvisational (befitting a D&D game).—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The two quickly built a rapport, and Preservation began sending ‘Nandez beats, eventually inviting him to New Orleans to hang out while devising the project’s sonic core and predominant themes.—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
30 Sep. 2025
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Prior to Leucippus, earlier scientist-philosophers had devised the concepts of elements as components of reality, and often looked to one component in particular as being the fundamental originator — or arche (ἀρχή) — of all the others.—
Ethan Siegel,
Big Think,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Two months later, the group launched more than two dozen attacks across northeastern Syria, relying on a combination of guerrilla tactics, including small arms fire, ambushes, assassinations, and improvised explosive devices targeting military checkpoints and government vehicles.—
Caroline Rose,
Foreign Affairs,
18 Sep. 2025
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The researchers believe this error was not from its knowledge base but was an improvised guess based on their prior conversation about the square’s diagonal.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Prosecutors described Sanaa Cunningham’s death as the result of a murder plot concocted by her father and stepmother, Germayne and Lisa Cunningham, following months of abuse and neglect.—
Perry Vandell,
AZCentral.com,
29 Sep. 2025
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Swartz concocted this massive blockbuster trade idea, which sends Brown to his hometown team, the Atlanta Hawks.—
Ricardo Klein,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The future, instead, seems to belong to the teams and coaches who are willing to be a little more flexible and see their role as providing a platform on which their players might extemporize.—
Rory Smith,
New York Times,
3 Mar. 2023
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Friends said he was talented and could extemporize about anything.—
Jacques Kelly,
Baltimore Sun,
24 Jan. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Ad-lib.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ad-lib. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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