- Live
- Live Live (l[i^]v), v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Lived} (l[i^]vd); p.
pr. & vb. n. {Living}.] [OE. liven, livien, AS. libban,
lifian; akin to OS. libbian, D. leven, G. leben, OHG.
leb[=e]n, Dan. leve, Sw. lefva, Icel. lifa to live, to be
left, to remain, Goth. liban to live; akin to E. leave to
forsake, and life, Gr. liparei^n to persist, liparo`s oily,
shining, sleek, li`pos fat, lard, Skr. lip to anoint, smear;
-- the first sense prob. was, to cleave to, stick to; hence,
to remain, stay; and hence, to live.]
1. To be alive; to have life; to have, as an animal or a
plant, the capacity of assimilating matter as food, and to
be dependent on such assimilation for a continuance of
existence; as, animals and plants that live to a great age
are long in reaching maturity.
[1913 Webster]
Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will . . . lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live. --Ezek. xxxvii. 5, 6. [1913 Webster]
2. To pass one's time; to pass life or time in a certain manner, as to habits, conduct, or circumstances; as, to live in ease or affluence; to live happily or usefully. [1913 Webster]
O death, how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that liveth at rest in his possessions! --Ecclus. xli. 1. [1913 Webster]
3. To make one's abiding place or home; to abide; to dwell; to reside; as, to live in a cottage by the sea. [1913 Webster]
Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. --Gen. xlvii. 28. [1913 Webster]
4. To be or continue in existence; to exist; to remain; to be permanent; to last; -- said of inanimate objects, ideas, etc. [1913 Webster]
Men's evil manners live in brass; their virtues We write in water. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
5. To enjoy or make the most of life; to be in a state of happiness; as, people want not just to exist, but to live. [1913 Webster]
What greater curse could envious fortune give Than just to die when I began to live? --Dryden. [1913 Webster]
6. To feed; to subsist; to be nourished or supported; -- with on; as, horses live on grass and grain. [1913 Webster]
7. To have a spiritual existence; to be quickened, nourished, and actuated by divine influence or faith. [1913 Webster]
The just shall live by faith. --Gal. iii. ll. [1913 Webster]
8. To be maintained in life; to acquire a livelihood; to subsist; -- with on or by; as, to live on spoils. [1913 Webster]
Those who live by labor. --Sir W. Temple. [1913 Webster]
9. To outlast danger; to float; -- said of a ship, boat, etc.; as, no ship could live in such a storm. [1913 Webster]
A strong mast that lived upon the sea. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
{To live out}, to be at service; to live away from home as a servant. [U. S.]
{To live with}. (a) To dwell or to be a lodger with. (b) To cohabit with; to have intercourse with, as male with female. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.
