How to Use liven in a Sentence

liven

verb
  • He played some music to liven the atmosphere.
  • Big band jazz from the Marines and Navy bands livened the spirits amid the dark clouds.
    Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, 1 Apr. 2024
  • In the winter, the city plants pansies to liven up the half-mile walk around the lake.
    Abigail Wilt, Southern Living, 17 June 2023
  • At least the king of daytime sleaze could liven things up a bit.
    Jason Williams, Cincinnati.com, 13 Sep. 2017
  • The dressing is livened up with the addition of the zest and juice of a lemon and chopped fresh tarragon.
    Southern Living Editors, Southern Living, 11 Aug. 2023
  • Here, shop the best indoor trees to help liven up your space.
    Rachel Besser, Vogue, 9 Mar. 2021
  • Will these steps liven up the show, or give it an aura of flop sweat?
    oregonlive, 8 Mar. 2022
  • At least with Serbia there’s a flag to liven things up.
    Vanessa Friedman, New York Times, 15 June 2018
  • But bold blues aren't the only thing livening up rooms throughout the home.
    Kristina McGuirk, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Dec. 2023
  • And these are the cutest earrings to liven up any outfit, all year round.
    Katie Devlin, Vogue, 21 Nov. 2018
  • Even when there was an attempt to liven things up, things went awry.
    John Petkovic, cleveland.com, 6 Apr. 2018
  • Cilantro: Adds color and freshness that livens up the smoky salsa.
    Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 26 Sep. 2023
  • The crispness of the celery and acid in the dressing liven up the cheesy, saucy pizza below.
    Alex Delany, Bon Appetit, 9 Mar. 2018
  • Vivid spice and leather notes liven up its soft fruit bouquet.
    Mike Desimone and Jeff Jenssen, Robb Report, 13 Feb. 2024
  • At their wedding, Meghan walked herself down the aisle and livened up the proceedings with a gospel choir.
    Karla Adam, BostonGlobe.com, 9 Jan. 2020
  • Bright yellow and electric blue liven up the snow-white slopes.
    Todd Plummer, Harper's BAZAAR, 31 Oct. 2019
  • This comes in grey, black, white, or a vibrant red to liven up your storage.
    Chris Hachey, BGR, 14 June 2021
  • So there’s no need to splurge on all-new furniture to liven things up.
    Vogue, 10 Nov. 2021
  • The breadth of styles currently available is meant to liven your look up a bit too.
    Vogue, 14 May 2022
  • This adorable fall wreath will liven up your front door from the first sign of fall through Thanksgiving.
    Megan Stein, Peoplemag, 12 Oct. 2022
  • The listing suggests adding a stage to host concerts and plays to liven up the venue during the movie season.
    Jordan Green, Detroit Free Press, 12 June 2024
  • The listing suggests adding a stage to host concerts and plays to liven up the venue during the movie season.
    Detroit Free Press, 28 Feb. 2024
  • Today, the 1,000-square-foot-store sparkles with bright white walls and floors, a striking contrast to the hits of color that liven up the space.
    Gail Goldberg, SFChronicle.com, 21 June 2018
  • Another approach could be to eat the right foods to liven up the bedroom.
    Amber Smith, Discover Magazine, 13 Oct. 2022
  • Also, a bit of crème fraîche added to a soup or a dessert can really liven things up.
    Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan, House Beautiful, 1 June 2010
  • Could the ridiculousness of this new version of Phaedra liven the show up enough to fill the space of Quad’s absence?
    Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 14 Jan. 2024
  • Tangy undertones livened up a soup with fish, tomatoes and greens.
    Mike Sutter, ExpressNews.com, 5 Sep. 2019
  • The urge to find something to liven up the home front is all too understandable these days.
    Vogue, 29 May 2021
  • Sunny pops of yellow liven up the space with a fresh burst of energy.
    Patricia Shannon, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Sep. 2024
  • Things will liven up a bit with Beetlejuice Beetlejuice next week, but things are looking quiet for a little bit after that.
    Wes Davis, The Verge, 31 Aug. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'liven.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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