as in zeal
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Recent Examples of Synonyms for élan
Noun
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Throughout many revealing conversations, the braggadocious zeal of Poseidon and Zeus, the sexy aloofness of Aphrodite and Dionysus, and the sniveling bitchery of Hermes and Hypnos were endearing, but all gave way to flawed people who grew deeply over time.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
27 Sep. 2025 -
The archetype is, of course, familiar—but Hawke imbues each of these characters with infectious zeal and a solemn, even sacred, severity.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
22 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Here, with a flinty gaze and revolutionary fervor, Taylor casts maternal instinct to the winds.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
26 Sep. 2025
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Prayers for an end to slavery were signed by tens of thousands of citizens from the Northern states, many of whom were women galvanized by the evangelical fervor of the Second Great Awakening.—
Time,
Time,
24 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Batiste did so with such skill, joy and verve, his playing at times suggested a heady jam session by Keith Jarrett, Fats Waller, Yuja Wang and Allen Toussaint.—
George Varga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
20 Sep. 2025
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Shot and designed with verve, Holland’s film has significantly more formal ideas than the average great-man biopic, seemingly trying a new stylistic tack every few minutes, between sundry crash zooms and blaringly disruptive soundtrack cues.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
20 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But for all its stylistic brio and an overall mesmerizing look, in which even throwaway visuals (like the icy corpse of a solider frozen to his battlefield steed) sear themselves into your memory, Frankenstein remains the simple, direct story of a man and his nonbiological offspring.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
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My experience didn’t quite live up to Rich’s lavish praise, but I was indeed dazzled by Greenberg’s New York wit, which struck me as an acutely sensitive, off-angle version of George S. Kaufman’s Broadway brio.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
8 July 2025
Noun
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The grit and gusto that Groff brought to the cast album was hard-earned.—
Joe Lynch,
Billboard,
16 Sep. 2025
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His absence allowed Rangers to target this area with such gusto that more than half of the visitors’ touches in the final third during those opening 45 minutes came down the Wrexham left.—
Richard Sutcliffe,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Plants have spreading roots that benefit from division every one to three years to maintain plant vigor.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
29 Sep. 2025
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Eian Bain’s squad with Bridgewater-Raynham showed impressive vigor against a state titan in Mansfield before falling on a walk-off field goal (a 24-21 loss).—
Brendan Connelly,
Boston Herald,
13 Sep. 2025
Noun
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At the same time, some automakers’ ardor for electric vehicles is cooling.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
16 Sep. 2025
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For me, that ardor finds one of its moving expressions in a small poem in Eternal Enemies, my first encounter with Zagajewski’s poetry.—
Elaine L. Wang
September 11,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
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With the oldest member being 88, the squad puts forward a show of vitality and warmth that inspires its fans.—
Amy Woodyatt,
CNN Money,
19 Sep. 2025
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With this era of our lives comes a vitality—experience, diversity, versatility, strength, humor, confidence.—
Kara Nesvig,
Parents,
18 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“élan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/%C3%A9lan. Accessed 30 Sep. 2025.
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