as in impromptu
made or done without previous thought or preparation
not bad for an ad-lib comedy routine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ad-lib
Sabrina Park, Harper's BAZAAR, 15 Mar. 2023
Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 11 Feb. 2026
The ad-lib dramatically changed the scene from how Trier and Vogt had written it.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 5 Jan. 2026
Puzzled, Aggie climbs the stairs and — as Nile continues to ad-lib — finds Teddy, dead, suffocated with a bag, in Cooper’s room, which is decked out to match the live feed.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2025
Recently, Chance The Rapper told DJ Bootleg Kev about Mac playing a vital role in one of his most famous ad-libs, noting that the moment occurred during an LA recording session with Chuck Inglish.
—Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Urban often ad-libs comments when performing the song live.
—Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 2 Oct. 2025
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
Being able to ad-lib was such a steep learning curve for me.
—Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 6 Apr. 2025
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
They were encouraged to ad-lib in character as Guest collected more than 60 hours of footage before taking a year to whittle it down to 84 minutes.
—Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 11 Feb. 2026
The ad-lib dramatically changed the scene from how Trier and Vogt had written it.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 5 Jan. 2026
Puzzled, Aggie climbs the stairs and — as Nile continues to ad-lib — finds Teddy, dead, suffocated with a bag, in Cooper’s room, which is decked out to match the live feed.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 14 Nov. 2025
Recently, Chance The Rapper told DJ Bootleg Kev about Mac playing a vital role in one of his most famous ad-libs, noting that the moment occurred during an LA recording session with Chuck Inglish.
—Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 24 Oct. 2025
Urban often ad-libs comments when performing the song live.
—Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 2 Oct. 2025
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
Being able to ad-lib was such a steep learning curve for me.
—Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 6 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ad-lib
Adjective
-
The impromptu choir, alongside dozens of others in the audience, was advocating for cuts to the Sacramento Police Department in favor of funding youth violence intervention, a community ambassador program, homelessness services and fee waivers for underserved residents.—
Jennah Pendleton,
Sacbee.com,
10 June 2026
-
Cole spent February driving around the country for impromptu fan meets, peddling CDs from the trunk of his pre-stardom Honda Civic.—
John Kennedy,
VIBE.com,
9 June 2026
Noun
-
King’s greatest talent as an orator was improvisation.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
11 June 2026
-
Known for a unique approach to improvisation and his warm, husky voice, Ulmer settled into a niche of his own in the late Seventies and early Eighties.—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
The wrap party, that was all improvised.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
11 Dec. 2025
-
The franchise already has its playbook, and judging by social media reactions, Blumhouse ran it without improvising for the win.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
8 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Director Josh Rowland describes the new improvisational show as set in a place where bounty hunters with empty pockets chase high-stakes outlaws through a gritty solar system trying to make a big score.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
4 June 2026
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All of those skills are especially important on clay and grass, surfaces where players have to be more creative and improvisational.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
Security firm Varonis devised an exploit chain that was able to catapult over these guardrails.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
16 June 2026
-
The researchers were Stanford psychologists carrying out an experiment on impulse control devised by Walter Mischel.—
Ian Bogost,
The Atlantic,
16 June 2026
Adjective
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Then Carol piles everything on her plate into a rough slice of avocado toast, mashing them together in an improvised layer.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
5 Dec. 2025
-
The first-of-its-kind operation at Kadena Air Base was conducted under Project Lima BEAN—Blazing Egress Airfield Nonstandard—demonstrating the drone's ability to operate from non-traditional airfields and improvised environments, the 18th Wing said.—
Ryan Chan,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Lukehart dumped Gabrielle's body in a local pond and concocted a story to trick police, court records show.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
1 June 2026
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With the trend away from toxic chemical control of plant pests and diseases, treatment formulas concocted from benign household products are on the rise.—
Joshua Siskin,
Oc Register,
28 May 2026
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 17 Jun. 2026.
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