improvise
Americanverb (used with object)
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to compose and perform or deliver without previous preparation; extemporize.
to improvise an acceptance speech.
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to compose, play, recite, or sing (verse, music, etc.) on the spur of the moment.
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to make, provide, or arrange from whatever materials are readily available.
We improvised a dinner from yesterday's leftovers.
verb (used without object)
verb
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to perform or make quickly from materials and sources available, without previous planning
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to perform (a poem, play, piece of music, etc), composing as one goes along
Other Word Forms
- improviser noun
- improvisor noun
Etymology
Origin of improvise
First recorded in 1820–30; from French improviser, or its source, Italian improvisare (later improvvisare ), verbal derivative of improviso “improvised,” from Latin imprōvīsus, equivalent to im- “un-” + prōvīsus, past participle of prōvidēre “to see beforehand, prepare, provide for (a future circumstance)”; im- 2, proviso
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The improvised prison pens—everything from old army barracks and training camps, barns and fairgrounds, derelict cotton warehouses and tobacco factories—were emptied out.
“We would improvise a lot, so we always had the rules as a guidance.”
From Los Angeles Times
When we try to control all of the parameters of our attraction and devotion, we leave no room for the great Dancer to improvise the next move in our life.
From Los Angeles Times
On the next-to-last take, Lindo improvised, letting music take the place of words.
From Los Angeles Times
Like all of Guest’s fake documentaries — including other zeitgeist staples like “Best in Show” and “Waiting for Guffman” — “A Mighty Wind” is largely improvised.
From Salon
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
