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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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Recent Examples of ad-lib
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
Juan A. Ramírez, Vogue, 22 Nov. 2024
According to Patton Oswalt, the cast would ad-lib jokes for Reynolds to say to Blade in Snipes’s absence.
—Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2024
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
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
First of all, Megan gets to ad-lib every night and comes up with really funny lines every single night.
—Juan A. Ramírez, Vogue, 22 Nov. 2024
According to Patton Oswalt, the cast would ad-lib jokes for Reynolds to say to Blade in Snipes’s absence.
—Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 2 Aug. 2024
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ad-lib
Adjective
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Jeff Goldblum shocked passersby with an impromptu piano performance at London’s St. Pancras International train station on Wednesday, in celebration of the release of Wicked.Lily Ford, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Nov. 2024
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But that simply meant more creative family vacations to his filming locations, and even an impromptu family vacation to Venice.Rachel Chang, Condé Nast Traveler, 13 Nov. 2024
Noun
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There were improvisations, installations, adaptations and novel collaborations among musicians and artists and media, with Mother Nature ever in the picture.Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 19 Nov. 2024
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But there’s one art form that successfully combines collaboration and improvisation (and math) to create something beautiful.Ariel Katz, Forbes, 24 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Many look-alikes will simply turn up and look like their doppelgänger, but Oliver embodies Brent for hours and hours, quoting beloved routines from The Office and improvising in character himself.Ralph Jones, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2024
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Sometimes, the pianist is front and center, improvising with energy and creativity, while the drummer and bassist lay back, providing the foundation.Brian Bartes, Forbes, 1 Nov. 2024
Verb
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The trio devised rudimentary games involving images and text questions.Stephen Ornes, Quanta Magazine, 8 Nov. 2024
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The Times reported these Telegram groups, which were largely created after the 2020 election, have devised plans to attend local election meetings, hold protest rallies and monitor voters at the polls with cameras.Conor Murray, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Emilia eventually concocts a risky scheme to reunite with her family under the guise of a relative.Lisa Wong Macabasco, Vogue, 1 Nov. 2024
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Hyman and his team also concocted a devilish backstory for Tony to explain some of his ostentatious wealth.Mark Peikert, IndieWire, 29 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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Two snaps later, Brock Purdy faked a handoff and found Jennings open for a 3-yard touchdown and the 49ers’ third go-ahead score of a back-and-forth game.Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 17 Nov. 2024
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Defense attorneys also called multiple experts to rebut testimony from Wala that Allen faked psychosis.Kristine Phillips, The Indianapolis Star, 12 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 30 Nov. 2024.
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