live|li|hood /la I vlihʊd/ (livelihoods ) N‑VAR Your livelihood is the job or other source of income that gives you the money to buy the things you need. □ …fishermen who depend on the seas for their livelihood. □ As a result of this conflict he lost both his home and his means of livelihood.
live|ly /la I vli/ (livelier , liveliest )
1 ADJ You can describe someone as lively when they behave in an enthusiastic and cheerful way. □ Josephine was bright, lively and cheerful. ● live|li|ness N‑UNCOUNT □ Amy could sense his liveliness even from where she stood.
2 ADJ [usu ADJ n] A lively event or a lively discussion, for example, has lots of interesting and exciting things happening or being said in it. □ It turned out to be a very interesting session with a lively debate. □ Their 4–1 win in Honduras was a particularly lively affair. ● live|li|ness N‑UNCOUNT □ Some may enjoy the liveliness of such a restaurant for a few hours a day or week.
3 ADJ [usu ADJ n] Someone who has a lively mind is intelligent and interested in a lot of different things. □ She was a very well educated girl with a lively mind, a girl with ambition. □ …her very lively imagination.
liv|en /la I v ə n/ (livens , livening , livened )
▸ liven up
1 PHRASAL VERB If a place or event livens up , or if something livens it up , it becomes more interesting and exciting. □ [V n P ] How could we decorate the room to liven it up? □ [V P n] The multicoloured rag rug was chosen to liven up the grey carpet. □ [V P ] The arena livens up only on Saturdays and Sundays when a flea market is open there.
2 PHRASAL VERB If people liven up , or if something livens them up , they become more cheerful and energetic. □ [V n P ] Talking about her daughters livens her up. □ [V P ] George livens up after midnight, relaxing a little.
liv|er /l I və r / (livers )
1 N‑COUNT Your liver is a large organ in your body which processes your blood and helps to clean unwanted substances out of it.
2 N‑VAR Liver is the liver of some animals, especially lambs, pigs, and cows, which is cooked and eaten. □ …grilled calves' liver.
liv|eried /l I vərid/ ADJ [ADJ n] A liveried servant is one who wears a special uniform. □ The tea was served to guests by liveried footmen.
liv|ery /l I vəri/ (liveries )
1 N‑VAR A servant's livery is the special uniform that he or she wears.
2 N‑COUNT [usu with poss] The livery of a particular company is the special design or set of colours associated with it that is put on its products and possessions. □ …buffet cars in the railway company's bright red and yellow livery.
lives Lives is pronounced /la I vz/ in meaning 1 , and /l I vz/ in meaning 2 . 1 Lives is the plural of life .
2 Lives is the third person singular form of live .
live|stock /la I vstɒk/ N‑UNCOUNT [with sing or pl verb] Animals such as cattle and sheep which are kept on a farm are referred to as livestock . □ The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.
live wire /la I v wa I ə r / (live wires ) N‑COUNT If you describe someone as a live wire , you mean that they are lively and energetic. [INFORMAL ]
liv|id /l I v I d/
1 ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] Someone who is livid is extremely angry. [INFORMAL ] □ [+ about ] I am absolutely livid about it. □ [+ that ] She is livid that I have invited Dick.
2 ADJ Something that is livid is an unpleasant dark purple or red colour. □ The scarred side of his face was a livid red.
liv|ing ◆◇◇ /l I v I ŋ/ (livings )
1 N‑COUNT [usu sing] The work that you do for a living is the work that you do in order to earn the money that you need. □ Father never talked about what he did for a living. □ He earns his living doing all kinds of things.
2 N‑UNCOUNT You use living when you are talking about the quality of people's daily lives. □ Olivia has always been a model of healthy living. □ …the stresses of urban living.
3 ADJ [ADJ n] You use living to talk about the places where people relax when they are not working. □ The spacious living quarters were on the second floor. □ The study links the main living area to the kitchen.
4 N‑PLURAL The living are people who are alive, rather than people who have died. □ The young man is dead. We have only to consider the living.
5 in living memory → see memory
li v|ing room (living rooms ) also living-room N‑COUNT The living room in a house is the room where people sit and relax. □ We were sitting on the couch in the living room watching TV.
li v|ing stand|ard (living standards ) N‑COUNT [usu pl] Living standards or living standard is used to refer to the level of comfort in which people live, which usually depends on how much money they have. □ [+ of ] Cheaper housing would vastly improve the living standards of ordinary people. □ Critics say his reforms have caused the fall in living standards.
li v|ing wa ge N‑SING A living wage is a wage which is just enough to enable you to buy food, clothing, and other necessary things. □ Many farmers have to depend on subsidies to make a living wage.