as in impromptu
made or done without previous thought or preparation
not bad for an ad-lib comedy routine
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in improvisation
something that is performed, made, or done without preparation
you would never suspect that that stirring speech was an ad-lib
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to improvise
to perform, make, or do without preparation
had to ad-lib constructing a piñata because she'd never actually seen it being done
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Examples of ad-lib in a Sentence
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples on the Web
Devan Coggan, EW.com, 18 Mar. 2023
At the same time, more ad-lib moments are often expected onstage, bound to keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
—Sabrina Park, Harper's BAZAAR, 15 Mar. 2023
Kimmel had to ad-lib when introducing the editing award.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 13 Mar. 2023
Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Oct. 2024
McCall’s ad-lib joke about beetles (as in the insect) got them the biggest laugh.
—Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Aug. 2024
Once, the teleprompter unexpectedly rebooted toward the end of a speech, forcing Biden to ad-lib while his speechwriter at the time, Dylan Loewe, frantically retyped the ending in real time.
—Josh Dawsey, Washington Post, 4 July 2024
Hand over a prepared text to lawmakers, then ad-lib.
—George Skelton, The Mercury News, 29 June 2024
After Carpenter sang her cheeky ad-lib lyrics, which included a reference to the famous indoor waterfall inside Singapore's Jewel Changi shopping mall, Keoghan smiled and immediately raised his hands above his head in applause.
—Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 3 Mar. 2024
The theater erupted in laughter, but Stewart encouraged him to keep talking about his process after the ad-lib.
—Variety, NBC News, 22 Jan. 2024
No, that's not an ad-lib auto-populated by a word cloud compilation of my secret Pinterest boards circa 2014.
—Danielle Sinay, Glamour, 18 Jan. 2024
The producers let Sorkin ad-lib some of her lines, adding a spontaneity to the usually glum proceedings.
—Neil Genzlinger, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Sep. 2023
Adjective
He's given me a lot of leeway and a lot of leash to go improv and ad-lib and create the character, which is always really fun.
—Devan Coggan, EW.com, 18 Mar. 2023
At the same time, more ad-lib moments are often expected onstage, bound to keep viewers on the edge of their seats.
—Sabrina Park, Harper's BAZAAR, 15 Mar. 2023
Kimmel had to ad-lib when introducing the editing award.
—Michael Schneider, Variety, 13 Mar. 2023
Verb
But little did Pearson know, Key would one-up these references with an ad-lib.
—Aaron Couch, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Oct. 2024
McCall’s ad-lib joke about beetles (as in the insect) got them the biggest laugh.
—Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Aug. 2024
Once, the teleprompter unexpectedly rebooted toward the end of a speech, forcing Biden to ad-lib while his speechwriter at the time, Dylan Loewe, frantically retyped the ending in real time.
—Josh Dawsey, Washington Post, 4 July 2024
Hand over a prepared text to lawmakers, then ad-lib.
—George Skelton, The Mercury News, 29 June 2024
After Carpenter sang her cheeky ad-lib lyrics, which included a reference to the famous indoor waterfall inside Singapore's Jewel Changi shopping mall, Keoghan smiled and immediately raised his hands above his head in applause.
—Julia Moore, Peoplemag, 3 Mar. 2024
The theater erupted in laughter, but Stewart encouraged him to keep talking about his process after the ad-lib.
—Variety, NBC News, 22 Jan. 2024
No, that's not an ad-lib auto-populated by a word cloud compilation of my secret Pinterest boards circa 2014.
—Danielle Sinay, Glamour, 18 Jan. 2024
The producers let Sorkin ad-lib some of her lines, adding a spontaneity to the usually glum proceedings.
—Neil Genzlinger, BostonGlobe.com, 8 Sep. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ad-lib
Adjective
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The Social Media Reaction After witnessing her sister's impromptu performance, DeSena couldn't resist sharing the footage on TikTok (@susandesena).Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
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In the video, Jin sings the tune in a parking lot under a bridge backed by a live band as skater boys and girls and other random fans pull up to check out the impromptu performance.Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 25 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Leaders should encourage this flexibility, creating an environment where improvisation is valued and practiced—without letting things go too far.Ariel Katz, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
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The Saturday Night Live alum, who returned to the show last week to once again play President Joe Biden in a cold open with Maya Rudolph's Kamala Harris and Andy Samberg's Doug Emhoff, revealed that the sketch's most memorable moment was an act of improvisation.Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 12 Oct. 2024
Verb
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But once the song started, the musicians had the freedom to explore and improvise.Ariel Katz, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
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The outtakes that end each installment of Poppa’s House leave the overall impression that it’s largely improvised, which may explain why there are certain fallback comic approaches and targets.Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
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This 2018 black comedy-drama tracks Arturo, a charming but unethical art gallery owner who devises a daring plan to revive his fortunes after his artist friend Renzo suffers memory loss.John Hopewell, Variety, 5 Nov. 2024
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Moreover, at the time the Electoral College was devised, there weren't such huge disparities in the size of the states.Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
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The blend of citrus, peach blossom, lemon, amber, and verbena doesn’t just smell like a swish salon— it was concocted with ingredients that boost the efficacy of the product.Jenny Berg, Allure, 23 Oct. 2024
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Prosecutors criticized Do on Tuesday for concocting a story on social media about the meals programs providing 2,700 meals a week.Michael Slaten, Orange County Register, 22 Oct. 2024
Verb
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The future, instead, seems to belong to the teams and coaches who are willing to be a little more flexible and see their role as providing a platform on which their players might extemporize.Rory Smith, New York Times, 3 Mar. 2023
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Friends said he was talented and could extemporize about anything.Jacques Kelly, Baltimore Sun, 24 Jan. 2023
Verb
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Rohan Nadkarni Lamar Jackson rolled out right on 1st-and-goal, faked a run and then found Nelson Agholor wide open in the end zone for a six-yard touchdown catch.NBC News, NBC News, 8 Nov. 2024
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There is a theory — deriving from the QAnon movement, apparently — that goes like this: President Obama and Vice President Biden conspired with Iran to fake the death of Osama bin Laden.Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 5 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near ad-lib
Cite this Entry
“Ad-lib.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ad-lib. Accessed 12 Nov. 2024.
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