as in to devise
to perform, make, or do without preparation
since the award was a complete surprise, I improvised an acceptance speech
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 improvise
The fact that a leading company is now consulting theologians is either a rare sign of humility or of an industry improvising its ethics in real time—possibly both.
—
Chris Stokel-Walker, Scientific American, 26 May 2026
Meanwhile, fans are improvising their own solutions.
—Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 25 May 2026
The escalating humanitarian crisis within Cuba remains a wildcard that could yet force either side into improvising responses.
—Sam Meredith, CNBC, 22 May 2026
Scorsese would improvise his bits.
—Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for improvise
Chris Stokel-Walker, Scientific American, 26 May 2026
Meanwhile, fans are improvising their own solutions.
—Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 25 May 2026
The escalating humanitarian crisis within Cuba remains a wildcard that could yet force either side into improvising responses.
—Sam Meredith, CNBC, 22 May 2026
Scorsese would improvise his bits.
—Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 22 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for improvise
Recent Examples of Synonyms for improvise
Verb
-
The commonly mistaken base assumption is that the greatest minds that have devised AI and consumed so much money doing so must certainly know every iota of how AI works.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
-
Building on a concept devised by the director and producer Pierre-Henri Léon, Santiago Otheguy’s script plays fast and loose with Bizet’s opera and the Prosper Mérimée novella that inspired it — to the point of inventing an entirely new protagonist.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
31 May 2026
Verb
-
Lukehart dumped Gabrielle's body in a local pond and concocted a story to trick police, court records show.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
1 June 2026
-
With the trend away from toxic chemical control of plant pests and diseases, treatment formulas concocted from benign household products are on the rise.—
Joshua Siskin,
Oc Register,
28 May 2026
Verb
-
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
-
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 8 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
