- 1living; not dead We don't know whether he's alive or dead. Is your mother still alive? Doctors kept the baby alive for six weeks. I was glad to hear you're alive and well. She had to steal food just to stay alive. He was buried alive in the earthquake.
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- 2alive (with something) full of emotion, excitement, activity, etc. Ed was alive with happiness. Her eyes were alive with interest.
- 3continuing to exist to keep a tradition alive Money from charities is keeping the theater alive.
- 4alive with something full of living or moving things The pool was alive with goldfish.
- 5alive to something aware of something; knowing something exists and is important to be alive to the dangers/facts/possibilities The government should be alive to the problems faced by big business. Idioms
- 1(of a subject or an event) to become interesting and exciting The game came alive in the second quarter. New political issues suddenly came alive after the election.
- 2(of a place) to become busy and full of activity synonym come to life The city starts to come alive after dark. The fishing villages come alive in spring.
- 3(of a person) to show interest in something and become excited about it She came alive as she talked about her job.
- 1[usually passive] (of insects, etc.) to bite someone many times I was being eaten alive by mosquitoes.
- 2to defeat someone completely in an argument, a competition, etc. The defense lawyers are going to eat you alive tomorrow.
- 3to criticize or punish someone severely because you are extremely angry with them He'll eat you alive if he ever finds out.
very active or healthy
to make something interesting The pictures bring the book alive. The teacher brought history alive with fascinating stories.
Check pronunciation: alive