1
as in pistol
a very energetic person
the babysitter will have her hands full with those two little live wires
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in powerhouse
an ambitious person who eagerly goes after what is desired
that new reporter on the police beat is a real live wire
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of live wire
And upon her return, Dana is a live wire.
—
Sam Reed, Glamour, 6 Mar. 2026
Place is a live wire 6 minutes before kickoff.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 17 Jan. 2026
As the person drove to the site, UI received four phone calls from the city of New Haven Fire Dispatch reporting that a live wire was down, PURA wrote.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 9 Jan. 2026
The new science is causing not just a technological sensation, but also a cultural one, twanging a live wire in the popular mind.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for live wire
Sam Reed, Glamour, 6 Mar. 2026
Place is a live wire 6 minutes before kickoff.
—Joe Nguyen, Denver Post, 17 Jan. 2026
As the person drove to the site, UI received four phone calls from the city of New Haven Fire Dispatch reporting that a live wire was down, PURA wrote.
—Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 9 Jan. 2026
The new science is causing not just a technological sensation, but also a cultural one, twanging a live wire in the popular mind.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for live wire
Recent Examples of Synonyms for live wire
Noun
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The remaining weapons were found during a search of his home and included a rifle, a shotgun, and another pistol.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
1 June 2026
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But Alamo breaks his own ground rules, raising his pistol and attempting to fire before the glass breaks.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
1 June 2026
Noun
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The island of Manhattan, home base for many of America’s financial and corporate powerhouses including Wall Street, had a gross domestic product of just over $1 trillion in 2024.—
Chris Isidore,
CNN Money,
6 June 2026
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But Epstein hired a powerhouse legal team, headed by some of the most aggressive lawyers in America.—
Julie K. Brown,
Miami Herald,
4 June 2026
Noun
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The new study instead suggests the dynamo may come from continuous core growth itself.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
10 May 2026
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His many credits include performances with the New York Philharmonic, pioneering minimalist composer Philip Glass, genre-blurring singer Cecile McLorin Salvant, drum dynamo Tyshawn Sorey and such past and present jazz sax powerhouses as Benny Golson, Jimmy Heath and Branford Marsalis.—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Live wire.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/live%20wire. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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