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Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective alive contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of alive are awake, aware, cognizant, conscious, and sensible. While all these words mean "having knowledge of something," alive adds to sensible the implication of acute sensitivity to something.

alive to the thrill of danger

When could awake be used to replace alive?

In some situations, the words awake and alive are roughly equivalent. However, awake implies that one has become alive to something and is on the alert.

a country always awake to the threat of invasion

Where would aware be a reasonable alternative to alive?

While in some cases nearly identical to alive, aware implies vigilance in observing or alertness in drawing inferences from what one experiences.

aware of changes in climate

When would cognizant be a good substitute for alive?

While the synonyms cognizant and alive are close in meaning, cognizant implies having special or certain knowledge as from firsthand sources.

not fully cognizant of the facts

When can conscious be used instead of alive?

The words conscious and alive can be used in similar contexts, but conscious implies that one is focusing one's attention on something or is even preoccupied by it.

conscious that my heart was pounding

When is sensible a more appropriate choice than alive?

Although the words sensible and alive have much in common, sensible implies direct or intuitive perceiving especially of intangibles or of emotional states or qualities.

sensible of a teacher's influence

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of alive Ars recently covered Cruz's proposals for NASA to keep the Space Launch System rocket, Orion spacecraft, and Gateway lunar space station alive, while the Trump administration aims to cancel Gateway and end the SLS and Orion programs after two crew missions to the Moon. ArsTechnica, 15 June 2025 June 15, 2025 A 3-0 lead with 14:48 left seemed safe for the Panthers...until Bouchard off a big effort by Mattias Ekholm to keep the puck alive, found McDavid alone in the right circle. Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 15 June 2025 This is why Analogue, and its family of retro systems using FPGA hardware, are helping to keep classic consoles like the PC Engine and the TurboGrafx-16 alive. Ollie Barder, Forbes.com, 14 June 2025 Late actor Anton Yelchin's parents are keeping his memory alive. Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, 14 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for alive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alive
Adjective
  • Under Proposition 309, voters casting mail-in ballots could provide a driver's license or non-operating identification license number, the last four digits of a social security number, or a unique identifying number provided by the secretary of state for voter registration purposes.
    Arlyssa D. Becenti, The Arizona Republic, 27 Oct. 2022
  • The adjusted net income decreased by 8% y-o-y to $3.9 billion in the first nine months of 2022 due to higher expenses as a % of revenues and lower non-operating income.
    Trefis Team, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2023
Adjective
  • Hospitals and health care systems across the country should ensure primary care physicians are aware of these tests and understand how to use them.
    Jim Taylor, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2025
  • Fatal attack The Pentagon is painfully aware of the threat.
    Tom Vanden Brook, USA Today, 8 June 2025
Adjective
  • Craft beer, diehard soccer fans, big patio screen with live music before and after.
    Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 8 June 2025
  • In the evenings, the courtyard comes alive with weekly garden parties featuring barbecues, wine tastings, and live music.
    Monica Mendal, Vogue, 8 June 2025
Adjective
  • For him, a slow summer simply means lazy days and not being busy, just enjoying the summer.
    Hannah Nwoko, Parents, 16 June 2025
  • While not playing the past two weeks, Campusano has stayed busy before games, catching in the bullpen and working at first base.
    Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 June 2025
Adjective
  • This means: • Setting clear financial and operational targets.
    Luigi Damasceno, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • The company touted his crucial role in spearheading Woolrich’s strategic and operational transformation through several milestone moments in its recent history.
    Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 10 June 2025
Adjective
  • Yet a strong, and entirely distinct, island culture is extant.
    The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 23 May 2025
  • The vibrant spirit of the island is also extant across the property’s three new restaurants and bars, like the panoramic terrace bar ideal for sipping sundowners and snacking on crudo.
    Monica Mendal, Vogue, 13 May 2025
Adjective
  • The objects appear startlingly animate, as if bodies and ethnographic specimens are hanging on display.
    Jane Levere, Forbes.com, 11 June 2025
  • Throughout the book, land and water are animate, so rivers speak and murmur and remember and address the reader.
    The New Yorker, New Yorker, 14 May 2025
Adjective
  • This includes tech startups like Queen One, which just signed a 10-year lease for its new headquarters in Williamsburg, joining a thriving innovation ecosystem in Brooklyn and contributing to New York City’s status as the applied AI capital of the world.
    Adolfo Carrión Jr, New York Daily News, 8 June 2025
  • Once a thriving port city, Ephesus is thought to have been originally settled around 1200 BCE, towards the end of the Bronze age.
    Michael Goldstein, Forbes.com, 7 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Alive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alive. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.

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