high-spirited

adjective

ˈhī-ˈspir-ə-təd How to pronounce high-spirited (audio)
Definition of high-spiritednext
1
as in joyful
joyously unrestrained a high-spirited crowd loudly cheering the basketball team on

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in spirited
marked by a lively display of strong feeling the band struck up a high-spirited march as the President's motorcade approached

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for high-spirited
  1. joyful
  2. spirited
  3. exuberant
  4. fiery
  5. lively
  6. spunky
  7. vivacious
  8. passionate
Adjective
  • The process of getting to know this book has been totally joyful.
    — Max Gao, Variety, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Family, friends and colleagues described Feldman as an amazing woman -- unconditionally accepting, active in her community, joyful, fun and compassionate.
    — Megan Fahrney, ABC News, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of joyful
Adjective
  • If the measure passes, expect a highly spirited game of hide-the-loot.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Amid the Bengals’ spirited last-minute rally, Jaguars cornerback Rayuan Lane III came up with the game-sealing tackle of Brown on fourth-and-10 at the Jacksonville 12.
    — Zak Keefer, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of spirited
Adjective
  • When the White Sox clinched their first playoff berth since 2021 with a blowout of the Kansas City Royals, Fletcher was holding the microphone in an exuberant locker room.
    — Don Riddell, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2026
  • In northern and western India the festival is marked by exuberant performances of Ramlila, a dramatic folk reenactment of the Ramayana.
    — Tamanna Nangia, Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of exuberant
Adjective
  • Ramsey is one of TV’s hottest actors right now, with previous roles including the fiery Lyanna Mormont in Game of Thrones, survivalist Ellie in The Last of Us and drug addict Kelsey in Time.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The operation has not been publicly announced, but was met with fiery reaction from Newsom.
    — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of fiery
Adjective
  • Echenoz sketches a lively and personal view of the bonds and minor psychoses that can occur when two people work in tandem, and sometimes in conflict.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Oct. 2026
  • This three-bedroom, one-and-a-half-bath house sat just off lively Main Street in Beacon, a town of about 15,000 people on the Hudson River.
    — Gabe Castro-Root, New York Times, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of lively
Adjective
  • Meanwhile, Susan was a spunky fan favorite on the inaugural Golden Bachelor season.
    — Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 2 Sep. 2026
  • The mop-haired actor plays Joey, a spunky boy onboard who bonds with Maddie over having absent parents in the military.
    — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of spunky
Adjective
  • In a poetic blend of reality and imagination, a vivacious Brooklyn teenager strives to reclaim her own fleeting childhood while helping raise her four younger sisters.
    — Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 29 Sep. 2026
  • For someone so vivacious, Pawlikowski is an expert purveyor of mortal facts.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of vivacious
Adjective
  • The Bigger Picture Netflix animation execs are passionate about their job and percipient.
    — John Hopewell, Variety, 10 Oct. 2026
  • Aerin Lauder and Jane Lauder have followed in their famous grandmother’s footsteps, passionate about both beauty and entrepreneurialism.
    — Jenny B. Fine, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of passionate
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.

Browse Nearby Words

high-speed
high-spirited
high-spiritedly
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Cite this Entry

“High-spirited.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/high-spirited. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

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