the experience of being alive; the course of human events and activities
<noun.cognition> he could no longer cope with the complexities of life
the course of existence of an individual; the actions and events that occur in living
<noun.state> he hoped for a new life in Australia he wanted to live his own life without interference from others
the condition of living or the state of being alive
<noun.state> while there's life there's hope life depends on many chemical and physical processes
the period during which something is functional (as between birth and death)
<noun.time> the battery had a short life he lived a long and happy life
the period between birth and the present time
<noun.time> I have known him all his life
the period from the present until death
<noun.time> he appointed himself emperor for life
a living person
<noun.person> his heroism saved a life
animation and energy in action or expression
<noun.attribute> it was a heavy play and the actors tried in vain to give life to it
living things collectively
<noun.tops> the oceans are teeming with life
the organic phenomenon that distinguishes living organisms from nonliving ones
<noun.phenomenon> there is no life on the moon
an account of the series of events making up a person's life
<noun.communication>
a motive for living
<noun.motive> pottery was his life
a prison term lasting as long as the prisoner lives
<noun.time> he got life for killing the guard
Life \Life\ (l[imac]f), n.; pl. {Lives} (l[imac]vz). [AS. l[imac]f; akin to D. lijf body, G. leib body, MHG. l[imac]p life, body, OHG. l[imac]b life, Icel. l[imac]f, life, body, Sw. lif, Dan. liv, and E. live, v. [root]119. See {Live}, and cf. {Alive}.] 1. The state of being which begins with generation, birth, or germination, and ends with death; also, the time during which this state continues; that state of an animal or plant in which all or any of its organs are capable of performing all or any of their functions; -- used of all animal and vegetable organisms.
2. Of human beings: The union of the soul and body; also, the duration of their union; sometimes, the deathless quality or existence of the soul; as, man is a creature having an immortal life.
She shows a body rather than a life. --Shak.
3. (Philos) The potential principle, or force, by which the organs of animals and plants are started and continued in the performance of their several and co["o]perative functions; the vital force, whether regarded as physical or spiritual.
4. Figuratively: The potential or animating principle, also, the period of duration, of anything that is conceived of as resembling a natural organism in structure or functions; as, the life of a state, a machine, or a book; authority is the life of government.
5. A certain way or manner of living with respect to conditions, circumstances, character, conduct, occupation, etc.; hence, human affairs; also, lives, considered collectively, as a distinct class or type; as, low life; a good or evil life; the life of Indians, or of miners.
That which before us lies in daily life. --Milton.
By experience of life abroad in the world. --Ascham.
Lives of great men all remind us We can make our lives sublime. --Longfellow.
'T is from high life high characters are drawn. --Pope
6. Animation; spirit; vivacity; vigor; energy.
No notion of life and fire in fancy and in words. --Felton.
That gives thy gestures grace and life. --Wordsworth.
7. That which imparts or excites spirit or vigor; that upon which enjoyment or success depends; as, he was the life of the company, or of the enterprise.
8. The living or actual form, person, thing, or state; as, a picture or a description from, the life.
9. A person; a living being, usually a human being; as, many lives were sacrificed.
10. The system of animal nature; animals in general, or considered collectively.
Full nature swarms with life. --Thomson.
11. An essential constituent of life, esp: the blood.
The words that I speak unto you . . . they are life. --John vi. 63.
The warm life came issuing through the wound. --Pope
12. A history of the acts and events of a life; a biography; as, Johnson wrote the life of Milton.
13. Enjoyment in the right use of the powers; especially, a spiritual existence; happiness in the favor of God; heavenly felicity.
14. Something dear to one as one's existence; a darling; -- used as a term of endearment.
Note: Life forms the first part of many compounds, for the most part of obvious meaning; as, life-giving, life-sustaining, etc.
{Life annuity}, an annuity payable during one's life.
{Life arrow}, {Life rocket}, {Life shot}, an arrow, rocket, or shot, for carrying an attached line to a vessel in distress in order to save life.
{Life assurance}. See {Life insurance}, below.
{Life buoy}. See {Buoy}.
{Life car}, a water-tight boat or box, traveling on a line from a wrecked vessel to the shore. In it person are hauled through the waves and surf.
{Life drop}, a drop of vital blood. --Byron.
{Life estate} (Law), an estate which is held during the term of some certain person's life, but does not pass by inheritance.
{Life everlasting} (Bot.), a plant with white or yellow persistent scales about the heads of the flowers, as {Antennaria}, and {Gnaphalium}; cudweed.
{Life of an execution} (Law), the period when an execution is in force, or before it expires.
{Life guard}. (Mil.) See under {Guard}.
{Life insurance}, the act or system of insuring against death; a contract by which the insurer undertakes, in consideration of the payment of a premium (usually at stated periods), to pay a stipulated sum in the event of the death of the insured or of a third person in whose life the insured has an interest.
{Life interest}, an estate or interest which lasts during one's life, or the life of another person, but does not pass by inheritance.
{Life land} (Law), land held by lease for the term of a life or lives.
{Life line}. (a) (Naut.) A line along any part of a vessel for the security of sailors. (b) A line attached to a life boat, or to any life saving apparatus, to be grasped by a person in the water.
{Life rate}, rate of premium for insuring a life.
{Life rent}, the rent of a life estate; rent or property to which one is entitled during one's life.
{Life school}, a school for artists in which they model, paint, or draw from living models.
{Lifetable}, a table showing the probability of life at different ages.
{To lose one's life}, to die.
{To seek the life of}, to seek to kill.
{To the life}, so as closely to resemble the living person or the subject; as, the portrait was drawn to the life.
But Mr. Iacocca counters, "I never worked harder in my life than in the last couple of years.
Although Mr. Siegel is described by some friends as a man who is reluctant to leave any money on the table in a business negotiation, he is anything but a Scrooge in his personal life.
He seeks a better life, distances himself from his criminal heritage.
The town may be dying, and though the mall out by the interstate and the Wal-Mart at the edge of town may be providing a commercial alternative to the town, they still haven't replaced the commerce and cohesion of town life.
Rosier was indicted 11 months after his wife's death when he said in a television interview that he "administered something to terminate her life" and wrote a book about how she died.
Some 39 per cent of life insurance respondents said that sales volumes actually fell in the period, in spite of expectations that they would rise.
Former US Central Intelligence Agency officer Aldrich Ames (left) was sentenced to life in prison after he pleaded guilty in Virginia to spying for Moscow.
Bertie's a frightfully decent chap and fancies himself a master schemer and solver of life's small problems, but his machinations always go awry, requiring the intervention of Jeeves ("Indeed, sir?") to get him out of trouble.
She had been raped by more than one person, her clothing was in disarray, she had suffered multiple scratches and abrasions, and she was so drunk that her life was in danger, the report said.
"But I think if I would have done that, I would have been ashamed for the rest of my life." Loftus, the crusader, was once a comfortable insider with a steppingstone resume.
From the time he arrived in Washington from Mississippi half a lifetime ago, the 46-year-old Mr. Russ labored to make life easier for members of Congress.
"They didn't hurt me but at one point I was scared for my life," said the warden, Roberto Sanchez Camareno.
This year some agents are visiting families with a new life insurance video they can play on home recorders.
A strong life business adds another defensive dimension. But such theoretical considerations will carry little weight with anyone other than value funds.
'This man loved life, he was joyful.
"If we are encouraged by their example to move from here to make this world a place of peace and love through the mutual service we give to one another, then senselessness will be turned into fullness of life," he said.
So there is no need to be rushed by enthusiastic, commission-hunting intermediaries. But delay can mean that, if the employee does eventually invest in a life company pension contract, there is less time for the underlying fund to grow.
Prosecutors said Terry wanted to start a new life and leave insurance proceeds to his family.
But their migration from country to city constitutes a great personal improvement in life style and a high measure of contentment.
Moody's downgraded its financial strength rating of Capital Holding's life insurance units and lowered its credit ratings on the parent company's debt.
Spare a thought, however, for the new recruits to the real business of life, those for whom 1994 may be the start of a lifetime of gardening until arthritis stops them in the 2030s.
The woman was not on the company's life support registry, which lists customers who use life support and medical treatment machines in their homes.
The woman was not on the company's life support registry, which lists customers who use life support and medical treatment machines in their homes.
He is also deputy chairman of the Clerical Medical & General life assurance society, as well as being a director of Monks Investment Trust and Macmillan.
Through his compact-disk player, a jazz band seems to come to life in his van.
And out of necessity: The U.S. can make mistakes and still hope to remove him from power, but a single error on his part could cost him his life.
LONDON (AP) - Italian film director Bernardo Bertolucci can go ahead with a movie on the life of Buddha.
"It's the perfect life style."
"There's a life cycle to these things," said Vic Miller, who advises governors and legislators on federal grants.
Donovan's life work is art usually seen at a great distance in a fleeting glance from a car window.