as in improvising
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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ad-libbing
Verb
-
To confront it, community members are building new institutions underground and improvising new forms of social life.—
Robert F. Worth,
The Atlantic,
19 Oct. 2025 -
As a member of the Soultronics, as the 13-person touring band was called, Hamilton stood harmonizing and improvising behind the man who was crafting a new foundation for soul music.—
Elise Brisco,
Rolling Stone,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
For 39 years, Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act has required redistricting institutions to consider racial and ethnic minority representation when devising congressional districts.—
Sam D. Hayes,
The Conversation,
13 Oct. 2025
-
The problem in devising such a tax is defining what constitutes a robot.—
Zach Halaschak,
The Washington Examiner,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
China has also been concocting a pretext for action.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
23 Oct. 2025
-
But in the late 1800s, food companies began concocting products that were wildly different from anything people could make themselves.—
Alice Callahan,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Rozier is accused of faking an injury to leave a game early and underperform expectations to manipulate bets that had taken place.—
Kate Plummer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Upon receiving the handoff, Pacheco hesitated for a beat before faking left, juking right and breaking a tackle on the way to his longest rush of the season — a 16-yard gain on a drive that ended in a Kansas City touchdown.—
Pete Sweeney,
Kansas City Star,
9 Oct. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Ad-libbing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ad-libbing. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share