as in to devise
to perform, make, or do without preparation
since the award was a complete surprise, I improvised an acceptance speech
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Recent Examples of improvise
The comedy versus the drama is the main thing; the freedom on ‘Reservation Dogs’ to improvise and go bigger than usual was important.
—
Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Strategy cannot be improvised in war.
—Kazem Kazerounian, Hartford Courant, 1 Apr. 2026
Everything is improvised in his practice.
—Britt Julious, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
Spencer Jones left the game after the first quarter with right hamstring tightness of his own, forcing Adelman to improvise.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 30 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for improvise
Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Strategy cannot be improvised in war.
—Kazem Kazerounian, Hartford Courant, 1 Apr. 2026
Everything is improvised in his practice.
—Britt Julious, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
Spencer Jones left the game after the first quarter with right hamstring tightness of his own, forcing Adelman to improvise.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 30 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for improvise
Recent Examples of Synonyms for improvise
Verb
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The crowd of about 50 people also began to devise a plan that would address public health in the absence of the hospital, which was abruptly shuttered last month after hospital ownership cited financial distress.—
Cam'ron Hardy,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Apr. 2026
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This byzantine corporate structure apparently did not exist until Altman devised it.—
Ronan Farrow,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In it, Pattinson concocts three cocktails thematically linked to his own work and three more inspired by his all-time favorite films.—
Emma Specter,
Vogue,
8 Apr. 2026
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Time to grow up and reject belief systems concocted before the invention of clocks and toilet paper.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The future, instead, seems to belong to the teams and coaches who are willing to be a little more flexible and see their role as providing a platform on which their players might extemporize.—
Rory Smith,
New York Times,
3 Mar. 2023
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Friends said he was talented and could extemporize about anything.—
Jacques Kelly,
Baltimore Sun,
24 Jan. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Improvise.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/improvise. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
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