as in impromptu
made or done without previous thought or preparation
stumbled through an improvised reply to an unexpected question at the press conference
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in devised
to perform, make, or do without preparation
since the award was a complete surprise, I improvised an acceptance speech
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of improvised
Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times, 26 May 2026
Now, those nightly improvised tangents have become one of the production's most beloved elements.
—Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 26 May 2026
In March, a man bearing an AR-15-style rifle crashed a car loaded with improvised explosives into a Michigan Jewish preschool near dismissal time.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 21 May 2026
The over 13-minute uncut interview shows the rapper thoroughly unsettling Colbert, in an improvised rap about, among other things, a romantic relationship between the pair of them.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 20 May 2026
That data only reflects damage caused by airstrikes, drone attacks and remote and improvised explosive device, or IED, explosions.
—Chantal Da Silva, NBC news, 13 May 2026
Allison Barr/The Oregonian via AP Portland police said in a statement Saturday night that during an ensuing search of the vehicle and building, investigators located several incendiary and improvised explosive devices, some of which had partially detonated.
—Faris Tanyos, CBS News, 3 May 2026
She was blessed with an unstinting energy and buoyancy that had her dashing off postcards far and wide, answering e-mails with improvised poetry, and cold-calling younger writers to offer encouragement.
—Pico Iyer, Air Mail, 2 May 2026
Mizrak can launch from regular runways or from improvised sites.
—Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 1 May 2026
Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 25 May 2026
The decision to restrict exports of minerals critical to defense and clean energy wasn’t improvised.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 20 May 2026
There’s a moment in Diamond between me and Vicky that was improvised in our last scene together.
—Rachel Handler, Vulture, 20 May 2026
Even the wiring had to be improvised at scale, with metal rods used in place of traditional jumper wires, since no off-the-shelf equivalents exist for a project of this size.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 17 May 2026
With limited supplies available, the pair improvised using items from passengers and crew — including blankets and a shoelace provided by a flight attendant, the outlet noted.
—Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 27 Apr. 2026
Bundelkhand is represented by Maans ke Dahi Bade, a lamb-and-lentil recipe improvised by Maharaja Digvijaya Singh of Sailana, while Panna finds its spot through the imperious-sounding Aash-e-Sangsheer.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Much of it seems improvised, and probably was.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 9 Apr. 2026
Chris Pratt improvised a nasty joke about Kim Kardashian during production of Parks and Recreation season 4.
—Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
Yet the idea of an improvised solo as a story to tell, and of the melody as the vehicle for that story, was a constant in his music.
—Don Heckman, Los Angeles Times, 26 May 2026
Now, those nightly improvised tangents have become one of the production's most beloved elements.
—Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 26 May 2026
In March, a man bearing an AR-15-style rifle crashed a car loaded with improvised explosives into a Michigan Jewish preschool near dismissal time.
—David Frum, The Atlantic, 21 May 2026
The over 13-minute uncut interview shows the rapper thoroughly unsettling Colbert, in an improvised rap about, among other things, a romantic relationship between the pair of them.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 20 May 2026
That data only reflects damage caused by airstrikes, drone attacks and remote and improvised explosive device, or IED, explosions.
—Chantal Da Silva, NBC news, 13 May 2026
Allison Barr/The Oregonian via AP Portland police said in a statement Saturday night that during an ensuing search of the vehicle and building, investigators located several incendiary and improvised explosive devices, some of which had partially detonated.
—Faris Tanyos, CBS News, 3 May 2026
She was blessed with an unstinting energy and buoyancy that had her dashing off postcards far and wide, answering e-mails with improvised poetry, and cold-calling younger writers to offer encouragement.
—Pico Iyer, Air Mail, 2 May 2026
Mizrak can launch from regular runways or from improvised sites.
—Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 1 May 2026
Verb
Rivilis also coaxes confident, naturalistic performances from her non-professional cast, who largely improvised their dialogue, making this a good fit for festivals with young audiences.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 25 May 2026
The decision to restrict exports of minerals critical to defense and clean energy wasn’t improvised.
—Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 20 May 2026
There’s a moment in Diamond between me and Vicky that was improvised in our last scene together.
—Rachel Handler, Vulture, 20 May 2026
Even the wiring had to be improvised at scale, with metal rods used in place of traditional jumper wires, since no off-the-shelf equivalents exist for a project of this size.
—Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 17 May 2026
With limited supplies available, the pair improvised using items from passengers and crew — including blankets and a shoelace provided by a flight attendant, the outlet noted.
—Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 27 Apr. 2026
Bundelkhand is represented by Maans ke Dahi Bade, a lamb-and-lentil recipe improvised by Maharaja Digvijaya Singh of Sailana, while Panna finds its spot through the imperious-sounding Aash-e-Sangsheer.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Much of it seems improvised, and probably was.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 9 Apr. 2026
Chris Pratt improvised a nasty joke about Kim Kardashian during production of Parks and Recreation season 4.
—Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for improvised
Adjective
-
The Giants first hosted Beckham for a workout April 20, after weeks of public flirting and an impromptu visit by the receiver to chat with Harbaugh at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix.—
Dan Duggan,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
-
Near the end of the night, several students reportedly made an impromptu decision to swim in the river near Dartmouth's student docks.—
Corin Cesaric,
PEOPLE,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
For this, Merighi found two Italian academics, Francesco Bof and Sergio Venturini, who devised a system to go from the events on the pitch to a final score for each player at the end of every game.—
Jack Pitt-Brooke,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
-
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
Adjective
-
Over two minutes, a spectrum of Black improvisational styles battle on what feels like a Red Planet, interspersed with video game chirps and tectonic-shifting airblasts that cool the magma cooked up during combat, each one building off the other’s energy.—
Tatiana Lee Rodriguez,
Pitchfork,
1 June 2026
-
Shange describes the night as having been both improvisational and in process for years.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
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
-
Their fragrances were always concocted around a storyline.—
Jennifer Weil,
Footwear News,
20 May 2026
Verb
-
Miguel Andujar hit a light chopper to third baseman Alec Bohm, who faked a throw to first and Tatis was tagged out in a rundown to end the inning.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
3 June 2026
-
But in the final scene, Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard) tells a story about how Eleven secretly faked her death and is living peacefully somewhere.—
Brendan Morrow,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Improvised.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/improvised. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
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