pep1
/pɛp
/informal
noun [mass noun]
Energy and high spirits; liveliness: he was an enthusiastic player, full of pep...
- Not surprisingly, depressed people lack pep and energy.
- It also had enough pep to cope with higher speeds and was perfectly happy in its top-end performance.
- Those who follow his advice should feel themselves fresh, charming, agile, vigorous, and full of pep.
Synonyms
dynamism, life, go, energy, spirit, liveliness, animation, bounce, sparkle, effervescence, fizz, verve, spiritedness, ebullience, high spirits, enthusiasm, initiative, vitality, vivacity, fire, dash, panache, elan, snap, zest, zeal, exuberance, vigour, gusto, drive, push, brio
informal feistiness, get-up-and-go, gumption, oomph, pizzazz, vim, zing, zip
verb (peps, pepping, pepped) [with object] (pep someone/thing up)
Make someone or something more lively or interesting: measures to pep up the economy...
- Audio quality is a bit more pleasing, with clear voices and lively music pepping things up.
- For the uninitiated, chicken paillard is strips of thin, marinated, char-grilled chicken, and it had a great accompaniment in the mash, which was nicely pepped up by some fine, flaky black pudding.
- The children are usually depressed and need to be pepped up.
Synonyms
improve, enliven, animate, liven up, put some/new life into, invigorate, vitalize, revitalize, vivify, ginger up, energize, electrify, galvanize, put some spark into, stimulate, get something going, add zest to, perk up, brighten up, cheer up;
season, spice, add spice to, pepper, leaven, flavour, add flavouring to
informal buck up
Origin
Early 20th century: abbreviation of pepper.
Rhymes
PEP2
/pɛp/(also Pep)
noun (plural PEPs)
(In the UK) personal equity plan, a scheme allowing individuals to hold shares and unit trusts free of tax on dividends and capital gains (replaced in 1999 by the ISA).
abbreviation British
Political and Economic Planning.
Origin
Acronym.