as in brightly
in a manner that is colorful and tends to arouse gaiety
a colorfully illustrated children's alphabet book
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Recent Examples of colorfully
Elegantly lensed and colorfully designed, this film noir time capsule has shades of both Chinatown and In the Mood for Love, setting an impossible romance against the corrupt backdrop of Ferdinand Marcos’ dictatorship circa 1979.
—
Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 4 Feb. 2026
With their imposing bulk, elegant curves, colorfully painted sterns, and ornate decorations, the vessels were among the most distinctive and beautiful ships on the seas.
—Literary Hub, 28 Jan. 2026
Brooks speaks colorfully and candidly, starting with his impoverished Brooklyn childhood, raised with three brothers by his mother after his father died of tuberculosis.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 22 Jan. 2026
Abundance comes from simply being yourself — boldly, colorfully, unapologetically.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 23 Dec. 2025
That was colorfully communicated this week by JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon , who said there may be more cockroaches in the industry after the country’s largest bank took sizeable charge-offs in the third quarter for exposure to Tricolor.
—Sarah Min, CNBC, 17 Oct. 2025
One expert, reflecting on personal experience, put it more colorfully.
—George Calhoun, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 4 Feb. 2026
With their imposing bulk, elegant curves, colorfully painted sterns, and ornate decorations, the vessels were among the most distinctive and beautiful ships on the seas.
—Literary Hub, 28 Jan. 2026
Brooks speaks colorfully and candidly, starting with his impoverished Brooklyn childhood, raised with three brothers by his mother after his father died of tuberculosis.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 22 Jan. 2026
Abundance comes from simply being yourself — boldly, colorfully, unapologetically.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 23 Dec. 2025
That was colorfully communicated this week by JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon , who said there may be more cockroaches in the industry after the country’s largest bank took sizeable charge-offs in the third quarter for exposure to Tricolor.
—Sarah Min, CNBC, 17 Oct. 2025
One expert, reflecting on personal experience, put it more colorfully.
—George Calhoun, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colorfully
brightly
Adverb
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In the brightly billboarded carcass of a West Coast city, private security shields the corporate enclaves of a tech élite from the shantytowns of the economically superfluous.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
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This could be anything from a sticker or patch to a ribbon—or something that does double duty, such as these brightly colored neoprene handle wraps.—
Alesandra Dubin,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Colorfully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colorfully. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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