Definition of 'improvise'
Word forms: 3rd person singular present tense improvises
, present participle improvising
, past tense, past participle improvised
1. verb
If you improvise, you make or do something using whatever you have or without having planned it in advance.
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
improvise in British English
verb
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
improviser (ˈimproˌviser) noun
Word origin
C19: from French, from Italian improvvisare, from Latin imprōvīsus unforeseen, from im- (not) + prōvīsus, from prōvidēre to foresee; see provideWord Frequency
improvise in American English
verb transitive, verb intransitiveWord forms: ˈimproˌvised or ˈimproˌvising
1.
to compose, or simultaneously compose and perform, on the spur of the moment and without any preparation; extemporize
SIMILAR WORDS: imˈprompˌtu
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin
Fr improviser < It improvvisare < improvviso, unprepared < L improvisus, unforeseen < in-, not + provisus, pp. of providere, to foresee, anticipate: see provideWord Frequency
improvise in American English
(ˈɪmprəˌvaiz) (verb -vised, -vising)
transitive verb
1.
to compose and perform or deliver without previous preparation; extemporize
to improvise an acceptance speech
intransitive verb
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
improviser or improvisor noun
Word origin
[1820–30; ‹ F improviser, or its source, It improvisare (later improvvisare), v. deriv. of improviso improvised ‹ L imprōvīsus, equiv. to im- im-2 + prōvīsus ptp. of prōvidēre to see beforehand, prepare, provide for (a future circumstance). See proviso]Examples of 'improvise' in a sentence
improvise
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In other languages
improvise
British English: improvise
VERB /ˈɪmprəvaɪz/
If you improvise, you make or do something using whatever you have.
You need a wok with a steaming rack for this; if you don't have one, improvise.
- American English: improvise /ˈɪmprəvaɪz/
- Brazilian Portuguese: improvisar
- Chinese: 临时拼凑
- European Spanish: improvisar
- French: improviser
- German: improvisieren
- Italian: improvvisare
- Japanese: 間に合わせで急場をしのぐ
- Korean: 즉석에서 만들다
- European Portuguese: improvisar
- Latin American Spanish: improvisar
- Thai: สร้างสรรค์จากสิ่งที่มีอยู่, แต่งกลอนสด, แต่งเพลงโดยไม่ได้เตรียมตัวมาก่อน
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Definition of improvise from the Collins English Dictionary
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