life
/lʌɪf
/noun (plural lives /lʌɪvz/)
1 [mass noun] The condition that distinguishes animals and plants from inorganic matter, including the capacity for growth, reproduction, functional activity, and continual change preceding death: the origins of life cats require visual experience during the first few weeks of life...
- The dark green color was chosen because it represents life, nature, growth, and ecology.
- As blood is pumped around the body, it carries oxygen and nutrients that are essential for life.
- For life to evolve, simple molecules have to combine to form more complex ones.
Synonyms
existence, being, living, animation, aliveness, animateness;
entity, sentience, creation, survival, viability
rare esse
1.1Living things and their activity: lower forms of life the ice-cream vendors were the only signs of life the valley is teeming with bird life...
- The hedge is teeming with wild bird life and just now, at the height of the nesting season, a model of industry.
- As they entered, they walked through a hallway and into the living room in search of a sign of life.
- The tide was way out and most of the bird life was as well, but I was happy to wait and see how the rising tide would affect them.
Synonyms
living things, living beings, living creatures, the living;
human/animal/plant life, fauna, flora, ecosystems, creatures, wildlife;
human beings, humanity, humankind, mankind, man, human activity
literary flesh
2The existence of an individual human being or animal: a disaster that claimed the lives of 266 people [mass noun]: she didn’t want to die; she loved life...
- Those of us who presume to speak for the lives of individual animals need to observe our subjects very carefully indeed.
- One of the defining evils of terrorism is that it uses human beings' lives to send a political message.
- So he owes us an explanation why only the lives of human beings are sacred.
Synonyms
person, human being, individual, mortal, soul, creature
2.1 [with adjective or noun modifier] A particular type or aspect of human existence: his father decided to start a new life in California [mass noun]: a teacher will help you settle into school life revelations about his private life...
- Their polytheistic view influenced every aspect of their daily lives.
- Much progress have been achieved in all aspects of their daily lives.
- Have we forgotten that interaction and association are important factors in the social lives of humans?
Synonyms
way of life, way of living, manner of living, lifestyle, situation, position, state, station, condition, set of circumstances, fate, lot;
sphere, field, line, career, business
2.2A biography: a life of Shelley...
- He also began work on his life of 17th century biographer and antiquarian John Aubrey.
- There were various poems, legends, saint's lives, chronicles and similar literature.
Synonyms
biography, autobiography, life story, life history, memoir, history, profile;
diary, journal, confessions;
record, chronicle, account, report, portrayal, depiction, portrait
informal biog, bio
2.3(In Christianity and some other religious traditions) either of the two states of a person’s existence separated by death: he departed this life on 28 March 1912...
- Since then, life after death as well as death between lives has been a fact for me, not just a belief.
- Either God is there or he isn't; either there is a life after death or there is not.
- Well sorry to tell you but if there is a life after death and you get there and don't like it then too bad.
2.4(In Hinduism and some other religious traditions) any of a number of successive existences in which a soul is held to be reincarnated: a spiritual pilgrimage into her past lives...
- It is only the rarest few who have come to earn this privilege in past lives.
- He called the earth to witness his many good deeds of past lives and so justified his seat in that place.
- Alleged memories of past lives are usually obtained by a procedure called hypnotic regression.
2.5A chance to live after narrowly escaping death (with reference to the nine lives traditionally attributed to cats): we were called to the hospital, but the old rogue had nine lives and seemed to be negotiating for another two...
- A cat has to catch and kill only one rabies infected mouse and it too will be dead and buried long before it lives out its nine lives.
- To this day he is living not only as someone with nine lives, but he is living the life of a new man.
- Ross the cat is looking for a new home before Christmas where he can retire and live out the rest of his nine lives.
2.6(In various games) one of a specified number of chances each player has before being put out.When a player has lost ten lives, she buys a round of drinks, the score is wiped clean and the next rubber starts....
- A player must hit his double to become a killer and can then start the business of taking lives from other players by scoring in their double.
- These players keep their last lives and another deal is played between them.
3 (usually one's life) The period between the birth and death of a living thing, especially a human being: she has lived all her life in the country they became friends for life...
- Some priests and priestesses served for life, others for a set period, usually a year.
- There is no job for life - only a life of worry about how to make ends meet and whether your pension will last as long as you.
- On the physical level, a car crash which brings you close to the point of death may leave you paralysed for life.
Synonyms
lifetime, life span, days, duration of life, allotted span, course of life, time on earth, existence, one's time, one's career, threescore years and ten, this mortal coil
informal one's born days
3.1The period during which something inanimate or abstract continues to exist, function, or be valid: underlay helps to prolong the life of a carpet...
- Meanwhile new moments in the life of the nation continue to inspire songs.
- This refers to the life of the machine and cannot be transferred to the next one you purchase.
- The lids seal tight, prolonging the shelf life of the contents.
Synonyms
duration, active life, lifetime, existence, functioning period, period of effectiveness, period of usefulness, validity, efficacy
3.2 [mass noun] informal A sentence of imprisonment for life.He was sentenced to life and is currently in Wakefield top security prison....
- In England and Wales the same offence is treated as rape where the maximum sentence can be life.
- He was sentenced to life in December last year for the murders of the girls.
4Vitality, vigour, or energy: she was beautiful and full of life...
- The juxtaposition of my somewhat flatly morbid work with the life and vitality of the farm is quite provoking.
- The two of them together are a dynamic team, full of energy, life and very headstrong.
- They were full of energy and life and argued their convictions against the war convincingly.
Synonyms
vivacity, animation, liveliness, vitality, verve, high spirits, sparkle, exuberance, zest, buoyancy, effervescence, enthusiasm, energy, vigour, dynamism, go, elan, gusto, brio, bounce, spirit, spiritedness, activity, fire, panache, colour, dash, drive, push;
business, bustle, hustle and bustle, movement, stir
informal oomph, pizzazz, pep, zing, zip, vim, get-up-and-go
moving spirit, moving force, animating spirit, vital spirit, spirit, vital spark, life force, lifeblood, essence, core, heart, soul, strength, quintessence, substance;
French élan vital
5 [mass noun] (In art) the depiction of a subject from a real model, rather than from an artist’s imagination: the pose and clothing were sketched from life...See also still life.
- It took him a mere two hours to sculpt his subject from life in wax before going on to mould the likeness in his unique paste.
- The large back room features portraits drawn from life - the actual rather than the ideal.
- As a result it became a real practical proposition to use the apparatus for making drawings from life.
Phrases
be one's life
come (or bring someone) to life
do anything for a quiet life
for dear (or one's) life
for the life of me
frighten the life out of
get a life
give one's life for
(as) large as life
larger than life
life and limb
the life and soul of the party (the life of the party)
life in the fast lane
life is too short
one's life's work
lose one's life
a matter of life and death
not on your life
save someone's (or one's own) life
see life
take one's life in one's hands
take someone's (or one's own) life
that's life
this is the life
to the life
to save one's life
Origin
Old English līf, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch lijf, German Leib 'body', also to live1.
The English word life is related to German Leib ‘body’, and also to leave (Old English), and live. The expression as large as life goes back to the days when portrait painting was common. Professional artists were expensive, and a good way of showing off your wealth was to have a portrait painted that was life-size. Early versions of the expression, dating from the mid 17th century, are greater or bigger than the life, with the modern form first recorded in the early 19th century. When someone lives the life of Riley they are enjoying a luxurious and carefree existence. Reilly or Riley is a common Irish surname, and the phrase may come from a popular song of the early 20th century called ‘My Name is Kelly’. This included the lines: ‘Faith and my name is Kelly Michael Kelly, / But I'm living the life of Reilly just the same.’ It is probable that the songwriter, H. Pease, was using an already existing catchphrase, but the song would have made it more widely known.