as in impromptu
made or done without previous thought or preparation
not bad for an ad-lib comedy routine
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ad-lib
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
24 June 2026
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
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Feb. 2026
The ad-lib dramatically changed the scene from how Trier and Vogt had written it.
—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
5 Jan. 2026
As seen in a video clip uploaded to the official Oscars YouTube channel, his ad-lib received applause from the audience in the room, but the Academy ultimately excluded the Chicago actor from presenting at the ceremony for several years.
—
Christopher Rudolph,
PEOPLE,
6 Dec. 2025
Puzzled, Aggie climbs the stairs and — as Nile continues to ad-lib — finds Teddy, dead, suffocated with a bag, in Cooper’s room, which is decked out to match the live feed.
—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
14 Nov. 2025
Recently, Chance The Rapper told DJ Bootleg Kev about Mac playing a vital role in one of his most famous ad-libs, noting that the moment occurred during an LA recording session with Chuck Inglish.
—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
24 Oct. 2025
Between the ad-libs to start the cut and rapping over drill 808s mixed with Jersey club, Cardi appears to be taking a page out of the Ice Spice playbook.
—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
Larkin doesn’t ad-lib too much.
—
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
24 June 2026
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
Verb
They were encouraged to ad-lib in character as Guest collected more than 60 hours of footage before taking a year to whittle it down to 84 minutes.
—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Feb. 2026
The ad-lib dramatically changed the scene from how Trier and Vogt had written it.
—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
5 Jan. 2026
As seen in a video clip uploaded to the official Oscars YouTube channel, his ad-lib received applause from the audience in the room, but the Academy ultimately excluded the Chicago actor from presenting at the ceremony for several years.
—
Christopher Rudolph,
PEOPLE,
6 Dec. 2025
Puzzled, Aggie climbs the stairs and — as Nile continues to ad-lib — finds Teddy, dead, suffocated with a bag, in Cooper’s room, which is decked out to match the live feed.
—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
14 Nov. 2025
Recently, Chance The Rapper told DJ Bootleg Kev about Mac playing a vital role in one of his most famous ad-libs, noting that the moment occurred during an LA recording session with Chuck Inglish.
—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
24 Oct. 2025
Between the ad-libs to start the cut and rapping over drill 808s mixed with Jersey club, Cardi appears to be taking a page out of the Ice Spice playbook.
—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
24 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ad-lib
Adjective
-
Arepas and coffee anchor impromptu support circles, as grieving customers cling to fragile hope for the missing.
-
An impromptu blind date with a handsome rapist ends with Esther punching him square in the nose, his blood gushing through her fingers.
Noun
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But improvisation is a good word because a jazz player can be incredibly precise, leave nothing to chance and yet be totally free to improvise.
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And its deft balance between free-wheeling improvisations and stop-on-a-dime dynamic precision, fire and finesse, never fails to impress.
Verb
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The characters have little time to make life-or-death decisions, let alone ruminate, and the action vacillates between triage and doctors expertly improvising solutions — like Mel (Taylor Dearden) donating her own blood, and Javadi (Shabana Azeez) going MacGyver mode with a tracheal tube.
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Grubbs will release a duo record with fellow avant-garde guitar hero Loren Connors, Somewhere in the Wind, on July 31, and is also prepping Bright Madness, his third improvised LP with musicians Wendy Eisenberg and Bonner Kramer for a late September release.
Adjective
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Leigh is known for making films in a collaborative, improvisational process with his performers and has stayed close with O’Flynn through the years.
-
The 34th annual edition of this popular festival, which focuses on improvisational, funk, roots and various styles of jam band music, takes place at the Nevada County Fairgrounds in Grass Valley.
Verb
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In 2011, Aguirre devised a technique to motivate his Real Zaragoza players ahead of a league match against Real Madrid.
-
Scientists at the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) have devised a technique to turn still-wet coffee grounds into high-grade biofuel in as little as 90 seconds.
Adjective
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Across La Guaira, the coastal state hardest-hit by the disaster, and in parts of Caracas, thousands of residents are spending nights outdoors in plazas, parks, sports courts and improvised encampments, sleeping on mattresses, blankets and folding chairs.
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Eventually, the rewrite and actors workshop rehearsal combined — a two-week period in which Jones, McCormick, Wilde, Rogen, Cruz, and Norton acted out, improvised scenes, and, most importantly, talked about characters.
Verb
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Brazil’s team, meanwhile, decamped to Orlando, Florida, where Laitano affixed players with sweat-collection patches and analyzed their fluid and electrolyte loss during workouts to concoct a hydration regimen for each person.
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In 1949, a Nebraska plumbing contractor named Steve Henson was working in Anchorage, Alaska and concocted a salad dressing out of buttermilk, mayonnaise, and herbs to help feed his crew on remote job sites.
Verb
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Eight pages later, Leucippe has to fake her own beheading to escape from pirates.
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Huskins Quinn’s case gained national attention after Vallejo police wrongly accused her of faking her disappearance.
Cite this Entry
“Ad-lib.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ad-lib. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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