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ad-lib
(redirected from ad-libs)

   Also found in: Wikipedia 0.03 sec.
ad-lib (dlb)
v. ad-libbed, ad-libĀ·bing, ad-libs
v.tr.
To improvise and deliver extemporaneously.
v.intr.
To engage in improvisation, as during delivery of a speech.
n. (dlb)
Words, music, or actions uttered, performed, or carried out extemporaneously.
adj.
Uttered, performed, or carried out spontaneously. See Synonyms at extemporaneous.

ad-libber n.

ad-lib [ædˈlɪb]
vb -libs, -libbing, -libbed
to improvise and deliver without preparation (a speech, musical performance, etc.)
adj (ad lib when predicative)
improvised; impromptu
adv ad lib
1. without restraint; freely
2. (Music / Classical Music) Music short for ad libitum
n
an improvised performance, often humorous
[short for Latin ad libitum, literally: according to pleasure]
ad-libber  n
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.ad-lib - remark made spontaneously without prior preparation; "his ad-libs got him in trouble with the politicians"
comment, remark, input - a statement that expresses a personal opinion or belief or adds information; "from time to time she contributed a personal comment on his account"
Verb1.ad-lib - perform without preparation; "he extemporized a speech at the wedding"
perform, do, execute - carry out or perform an action; "John did the painting, the weeding, and he cleaned out the gutters"; "the skater executed a triple pirouette"; "she did a little dance"
Adj.1.ad-lib - with little or no preparation or forethought; "his ad-lib comments showed poor judgment"; "an extemporaneous piano recital"; "an extemporary lecture"; "an extempore skit"; "an impromptu speech"; "offhand excuses"; "trying to sound offhanded and reassuring"; "an off-the-cuff toast"; "a few unrehearsed comments"
unprepared - without preparation; not prepared for; "unprepared remarks"; "the shock was unprepared"; "our treaty makers approached their immensely difficult problems unprepared"- R.E.Danielson
2.ad-lib - said or done without having been planned or written in advance; "he made a few ad-lib remarks"
unscripted - not furnished with or using a script; "unrehearsed and unscript spot interviews"; "unscripted talk shows"

ad-lib
verb
improvise, speak off the cuff, vamp, busk, wing it (informal), extemporize, speak extemporaneously, speak impromptu He is rather disjointed when he ad-libs.
adjective
improvised, made up, impromptu, unprepared, off-the-cuff (informal), unrehearsed, extempore, off the top of your head, extemporaneous, extemporized Sometimes, being in an ad-lib situation is the best way.
noun improvisation, makeshift, impromptu comment, expedient Every time he got me out of trouble with a brilliant ad-lib.
adverb off the cuff, spontaneously, impromptu, extempore, off the top of your head (informal), without preparation, extemporaneously, without rehearsal I spoke from the pulpit ad-lib.
Translations
ad-lib1
adj attr, ad lib2 adj predimprovisiert

ad-lib2
ad-lib [ædˈlɪb]
1. vt & viimprovvisare
2. nimprovvisazione f
3. adjimprovvisato/a, estemporaneo/a
4. adv (speak) → a piacere


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? Mentioned in ? References in periodicals archive
 
James Woods as Sebastian Stark, a former hotshot defense lawyer now working for the DA's office, ad-libs a comic insult toward the judge each time.
Then I play the Otis version, with its obviously joyful, sexual but also slyly ironic response to the old fogey standard in which, as the liner notes indicate, "[Otis] can't quite bring himself to say 'May all your Christmases be white' the first time through, so he gently stammers and ad-libs his way around it in a clever, horn-spurred turnaround until he can make his hidden agenda perfectly clear.
He's even worse when he ad-libs, which he did a great deal.
 
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