animate

1 of 2

adjective

an·​i·​mate ˈa-nə-mət 

1

: possessing or characterized by life : alive

2

: full of life : animated

3

: of or relating to animal life as opposed to plant life

4

: referring to a living thing

an animate noun

animately adverb

animateness noun

animate

2 of 2

verb

an·​i·​mate ˈa-nə-ˌmāt 

animated; animating

transitive verb

1

: to give spirit and support to : encourage

2

a

: to give life to

b

: to give vigor and zest to

3

: to move to action

a criminal animated by greed

4

a

: to make or design in such a way as to create apparently spontaneous lifelike movement

animate a cartoon

b

: to produce in the form of an animated cartoon

animate a story

Did you know?

The Latin word anima meaning “breath, soul” that gave us “animal” has given us other words. The English adjective animate meaning “alive” comes from the Latin verb animare, meaning “to give life to,” which in turn came from anima. A characteristic of animals is their ability to move. When a cartoon is drawn and filmed in such a way that lifelike movement is produced, it is animated. An animated film seems to have a life of its own.

Synonyms

Adjective

• active
• airy
• animated
• bouncing
• brisk
• energetic
• frisky
• gay
• jaunty
• jazzy
• kinetic
• lively
• mettlesome
• peppy
• perky
• pert
• pizzazzy
• pizazzy
• racy
• snappy
• spanking
• sparky
• spirited
• sprightly
• springy
• vital
• vivacious
• zippy

Verb

• amp (up)
• brace
• energize
• enliven
• fillip
• fire
• ginger (up)
• invigorate
• jazz (up)
• juice up
• jump-start
• liven (up)
• pep (up)
• quicken
• spike
• stimulate
• vitalize
• vivify
• zip (up)

Choose the Right Synonym for animate

quicken, animate, enliven, vivify mean to make alive or lively.

quicken stresses a sudden renewal of life or activity especially in something inert.

the arrival of spring quickens the earth

animate emphasizes the imparting of motion or vitality to what is or might be mechanical or artificial.

happiness animated his conversation

enliven suggests a stimulus that arouses from dullness or torpidity.

enlivened her lectures with humorous anecdotes

vivify implies a freshening or energizing through renewal of vitality.

new blood needed to vivify the dying club

Examples of animate in a Sentence

Adjective

The lecture was about ancient worship of animate and inanimate objects.

an animate dance routine that will really get the blood pumping

Verb

The writer's humor animates the novel.

The film's very realistic dinosaurs were animated on computers.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Toward the end, the story begins to shift perspective, first from Gabriel to his friend June, then to Thornton, and finally to the animate natural world around them. —Dennis Zhou, The New Yorker, 15 Dec. 2024

While different religions and ancient cultures had described the planet as animate for eons, Lovelock’s contemporaries in the scientific community were more apt to shun this notion, preferring a Darwinian stance that species adapted to their environments, but not vice versa. —Joe Spring, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Dec. 2024

Verb

Each episode tells its own story, and in the first season is animated by one of half a dozen famous anime studios, like Trigger, Production IG, and Science Saru. —Gord Magill, Newsweek, 21 Dec. 2024

The great movements are animated by causes the parties initially ignore. —Matthew Continetti, National Review, 21 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective and Verb

Middle English, from Latin animatus, past participle of animare to give life to, from anima breath, soul; akin to Old English ōthian to breathe, Latin animus spirit, Greek anemos wind, Sanskrit aniti he breathes

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

animate

1 of 2 adjective

an·​i·​mate ˈan-ə-mət 

1

: having life : alive

2

: animated sense 1, lively

animately adverb

animate

2 of 2 verb

an·​i·​mate ˈan-ə-ˌmāt 

animated; animating

1

: to give life to : make alive

2

: to give spirit and vigor to : enliven

3

: to make as an animated cartoon

animate a story

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English animate "alive," from Latin animatus (same meaning), derived from anima "soul, breath" — related to animal see Word History at animal

Word Origin

The same Latin word anima meaning "breath, soul" that gave us animal has given us other words. The English adjective animate meaning "alive" comes from the Latin verb animare meaning "to give life to," which in turn came from anima. A characteristic of animals is their ability to move about. When a cartoon is drawn and filmed in such a way that lifelike movement is produced, we say it is animated. An animated film seems to have a life of its own.

Medical Definition

animate

adjective

an·​i·​mate ˈan-ə-mət 

1

: possessing or characterized by life

2

: of or relating to animal life as opposed to plant life