animate

animate — adjective

1. alive — used to describe people, animals, and other beings that breathe and grow

1.adjectiveC1
Definition

alive — used to describe people, animals, and other beings that breathe and grow, as opposed to stones, machines, or anything without life. In some grammar studies, the word also marks nouns for living things (such as 'dog' or 'child') as a separate group from nouns for objects.

Example

Bram sorted the museum cards into animate creatures and lifeless minerals.

animate + noun, contrasted with lifeless

In some languages, animate nouns like 'dog' take a different ending from words for stones or chairs.

grammar context: animate nouns

Common collocations
  • animate beings
  • animate objects
  • animate nouns
  • animate matter
Synonyms
  • living

    the everyday word; 'animate' is the technical or formal counterpart

  • alive

    predicative only; cannot sit before a noun the way 'animate' can

  • sentient

    narrower — emphasises feeling and awareness, not just being alive

Antonyms
  • inanimate

    the standard pair, used for stones, machines, and other lifeless things

  • lifeless

    more vivid, often suggesting something once was or should be alive

Grammar Patterns

animate + noun

be animate

Usage Note

Mostly used in formal, scientific, or grammatical writing; in everyday speech, 'living' or 'alive' is far more common. Often paired with an explicit contrast such as 'inanimate', 'lifeless', or 'plant'.

Common Mistakes

My grandfather is animate today after his nap.
My grandfather is lively today after his nap.
'animate' as an adjective only means 'having life', not 'energetic'; use 'lively' or 'animated' for the energy meaning.

animate — verb

Word family

  • animated
    adjectiveB1
  • animation
    nounB1
  • animator
    nounB2
  • inanimate
    adjectiveC1
  • reanimate
    verbC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/2

All four verbs describe putting more life into a person, group, or situation, but the texture differs. 'Animate' is the most formal and often appears in writing about ideas or speeches: a belief or hope animates someone's actions. 'Enliven' is the everyday choice for making something dull more enjoyable, as when music enlivens a long bus ride. 'Energise' focuses on physical or mental power — a strong coffee energises you for an exam, where 'animate' would feel oddly literary. 'Inspire' shifts the meaning toward goals and creative ideas; an inspiring teacher pushes you to try something new, while an animating teacher simply makes the room feel alive. Compare: 'Her belief in fair pay animated her writing' versus 'Her cheerful playlist enlivened the office' versus 'A nap energised her for the meeting.'

animate ↗enlivenenergise ↗inspire ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • a discussion
  • a debate
  • a crowd
  • a character
  • a scene
  • a logo

Adverbs

  • briefly animate
  • suddenly animate
  • fully animate

Phrases

  • animate by hand
  • animate using software
  • be animated by a desire to

Prepositions

  • animated by [belief/hope/anger]
  • animate with [colour/music/light]

Etymology

LatinFrenchEnglish

Comes from the Latin word 'anima', meaning 'breath' or 'soul'. The Latin verb 'animare' meant 'to give breath or life to', and entered English in the 1500s through French. The earliest English meaning was the literal 'to give life to', from which two modern senses grew: the figurative 'to fill with energy or feeling', and, from the early days of cinema in the 20th century, the technical 'to make drawings or models seem to move on screen'.