liv´ing|ness

liv|ing «LIHV ihng», adjective, noun, verb.

–adj.

1. having life; being alive: »

a living plant.

2. full of life; vigorous; strong; active: »

a living faith; the living question of the hour (Oliver Wendell Holmes).

SYNONYM(S): lively.

3. in actual existence; still in use; alive: »

a living language.

4. true to life; vivid; lifelike: »

a living portrait, a picture which is the living image of a person.

5. of life; to sustain life: »

The tramp's life is one of poor living conditions. My living expenses had been considerably larger than my total receipts (Atlantic).

6. sufficient to live on: »

a living pension.

7. for living in; for use by a family: »

a living area, a living unit.

8. of or having to do with human beings: »

within living memory.

9. burning; flaming; live: »

living coals.

10. refreshing, as water: »

... they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters (Jeremiah 2:13).

–n.

1. the condition of being alive: »

the pleasures of living in the country. The old man is tired of living.

2. the means of keeping alive; livelihood: »

What does he do for a living? He earns his living as a grocer.

3. manner of life: »

The preacher urged the importance of right living. Plain living and high thinking are no more (Wordsworth).

4. (in Great Britain) a position in the church with the income attached; benefice.

5. Obsolete. property in general, especially a landed estate. a)

the present participle of live¹.

–liv´ing|ly, adverb.

–liv´ing|ness, noun.

Synonym Study noun. 2 Living, livelihood, support mean a person's means of providing shelter, food, and other necessities for himself. Living, the general word, applies to what he earns and how he does so: »

to earn a bare living, to work hard for one's living.

Livelihood applies particularly to the kind of work he does: »

Painting, once merely a hobby, became her livelihood.

Support applies particularly to what is provided for another's living: »

to depend on one's parents for support.