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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 Yet the urge—or the duty—was still alive. Bee Wilson, Vogue, 15 Oct. 2025 Under the ceasefire deal, Hamas had until midnight on Monday to hand over all hostages to Israel — 20 alive and 28 deceased. Alexandra Banner, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2025 Hamas agreed to return all alive and deceased hostages within 72 hours of a deal being reached with Israel, a time frame that officially began on Saturday and concluded Monday. Caitlin McFall, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2025 Also, the Cowboys are still alive in the playoff race right now. James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for alive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alive
Adjective
  • The unconventional thriller played like gangbusters to the buzzing New York crowd.
    Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 7 Oct. 2025
  • At the time of his sentencing, Williams was a buzzing rapper, with his 2021 mixtape Shiesty Season, his only full-length project, peaking at Number Three on the Billboard 200.
    Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 7 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Last year, though revenue and operating profit increased, non-operating red ink pushed the company into a full-year loss of NT$766 million, or $25 million.
    Russell Flannery, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
  • 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
  • The plan does not cover pre-existing conditions, training or obedience classes and more.
    Ryley Amond, CNBC, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Media outlets like National Geographic and polar explorers questioned whether some of his claims were embellished (which O'Brady forcefully denied) and criticized the all-land route that included traveling on pre-existing tracks.
    Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The docuseries also included an allegation that Michaels was aware of the administration of caffeine pills to contestants — claims that Michaels quickly and vigorously denied.
    Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Oct. 2025
  • Without nerve sensation, the patients weren’t aware of festering ulcers and infections, which therefore went untreated until amputation was the only option.
    Carrie Arnold, Scientific American, 14 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Later in the panel, after screening clips and animatics with live commentary and holding giveaways for fans, the panel shared messages from the director and character designer.
    Abbey White, HollywoodReporter, 12 Oct. 2025
  • In live performances of the indie pop hit, Role Model has often invited a fan, another musician, or some other special guest to play the part of Sally.
    William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Perfect for both busy workdays and evenings out, the versatile top is easy to pair with lightwash jeans and a belt, or layered beautifully under blazers and cardigans.
    Mariana Best, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Oct. 2025
  • For less hustle and bustle, busiest avoid traveling Tuesday, Wednesday and Sunday.
    Frank Witsil, Freep.com, 17 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The paper addresses operational procedures, describing mechanical and electrical triggers, containment strategies for managing gases, and a full process timeline of roughly 335 minutes from initiation to material extraction.
    Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Tuesday was filled with intensive coaching and mentorship sessions with Walmart and Sam's Club merchants, sourcing experts and past Open Call alumni about scaling up production, improving packaging, and strengthening their financial and operational readiness.
    Serenah McKay, Arkansas Online, 11 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Aside from these extant benchmarks, experts have long debated what an ideal demonstration would look like.
    Matthew Hutson, IEEE Spectrum, 22 Sep. 2025
  • Tracking new information about the firm The other challenge for extant directors is to stay abreast of the news, 8-Ks, chatter, or sentiment about the firm between board meetings.
    Shivaram Rajgopal, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

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

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