v. i. [ imp. & p. p. Lived p. pr. & vb. n. Living. ] [ OE. liven, livien, AS. libban, lifian; akin to OS. libbian, D. leven, G. leben, OHG. lebēn, Dan. leve, Sw. lefva, Icel. lifa to live, to be left, to remain, Goth. liban to live; akin to E. leave to forsake, and life, Gr. liparei^n to persist, liparo`s oily, shining, sleek, li`pos fat, lard, Skr. lip to anoint, smear; -- the first sense prob. was, to cleave to, stick to; hence, to remain, stay; and hence, to live. ] 1. To be alive; to have life; to have, as an animal or a plant, the capacity of assimilating matter as food, and to be dependent on such assimilation for a continuance of existence; as, animals and plants that live to a great age are long in reaching maturity. [ 1913 Webster ]

Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I will . . . lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live. Ezek. xxxvii. 5, 6. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To pass one's time; to pass life or time in a certain manner, as to habits, conduct, or circumstances; as, to live in ease or affluence; to live happily or usefully. [ 1913 Webster ]

O death, how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that liveth at rest in his possessions! Ecclus. xli. 1. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. To make one's abiding place or home; to abide; to dwell; to reside; as, to live in a cottage by the sea. [ 1913 Webster ]

Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. Gen. xlvii. 28. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. To be or continue in existence; to exist; to remain; to be permanent; to last; -- said of inanimate objects, ideas, etc. [ 1913 Webster ]

Men's evil manners live in brass; their virtues
We write in water. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. To enjoy or make the most of life; to be in a state of happiness; as, people want not just to exist, but to live. [ 1913 Webster ]

What greater curse could envious fortune give
Than just to die when I began to live? Dryden. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. To feed; to subsist; to be nourished or supported; -- with on; as, horses live on grass and grain. [ 1913 Webster ]

7. To have a spiritual existence; to be quickened, nourished, and actuated by divine influence or faith. [ 1913 Webster ]

The just shall live by faith. Gal. iii. ll. [ 1913 Webster ]

8. To be maintained in life; to acquire a livelihood; to subsist; -- with on or by; as, to live on spoils. [ 1913 Webster ]

Those who live by labor. Sir W. Temple. [ 1913 Webster ]

9. To outlast danger; to float; -- said of a ship, boat, etc.; as, no ship could live in such a storm. [ 1913 Webster ]

A strong mast that lived upon the sea. Shak. [ 1913 Webster ]

To live out, to be at service; to live away from home as a servant. [ U. S. ] --
To live with. (a) To dwell or to be a lodger with. (b) To cohabit with; to have intercourse with, as male with female. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. [ Abbreviated from alive. See Alive, Life. ] 1. Having life; alive; living; not dead. [ 1913 Webster ]

If one man's ox hurt another's, that he die; then they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of it. Ex. xxi. 35. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. Being in a state of ignition; burning; having active properties; as, a live coal; live embers. “ The live ether.” Thomson. [ 1913 Webster ]

3. Full of earnestness; active; wide awake; glowing; as, a live man, or orator. [ 1913 Webster ]

4. Vivid; bright. “ The live carnation.” Thomson. [ 1913 Webster ]

5. (Engin.) Imparting power; having motion; as, the live spindle of a lathe; live steam. [ 1913 Webster ]

6. (Elec.) Connected to a voltage source; as, a live wire. [ PJC ]

7. (Broadcasting) Being transmitted instantaneously, as events occur, in contrast to recorded. [ PJC ]

8. (Sport) Still in active play; -- of a ball being used in a game; as, a live ball. [ PJC ]

9. Pertaining to an entertainment event which was performed (and possibly recorded) in front of an audience; contrasted to performances recorded in a studio without an audience. [ PJC ]

Live birth, the condition of being born in such a state that acts of life are manifested after the extrusion of the whole body. Dunglison. --
Live box, a cell for holding living objects under microscopical examination. P. H. Gosse. --
Live feathers, feathers which have been plucked from the living bird, and are therefore stronger and more elastic. --
Live gang. (Sawing) See under Gang. --
Live grass (Bot.), a grass of the genus Eragrostis. --
Live load (Engin.), a suddenly applied load; a varying load; a moving load; as a moving train of cars on a bridge, or wind pressure on a roof.
Live oak (Bot.), a species of oak (Quercus virens), growing in the Southern States, of great durability, and highly esteemed for ship timber. In California the Quercus chrysolepis and some other species are also called live oaks. --
Live ring (Engin.), a circular train of rollers upon which a swing bridge, or turntable, rests, and which travels around a circular track when the bridge or table turns. --
Live steam , steam direct from the boiler, used for any purpose, in distinction from exhaust steam. --
Live stock, horses, cattle, and other domestic animals kept on a farm. whole body. --
live wire (a) (Elec.) a wire connected to a power source, having a voltage potential; -- used esp. of a power line with a high potential relative to ground, capable of harming a person who touches it. (b) (Fig.) a person who is unusually active, alert, or aggressive. [ 1913 Webster +PJC ]

v. t. 1. To spend, as one's life; to pass; to maintain; to continue in, constantly or habitually; as, to live an idle or a useful life. [ 1913 Webster ]

2. To act habitually in conformity with; to practice. [ 1913 Webster ]

To live the Gospel. Foxe. [ 1913 Webster ]

To live down, to live so as to subdue or refute; as, to live down slander. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. Life. [ Obs. ] Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

On live, in life; alive. [ Obs. ] See Alive. Chaucer. [ 1913 Webster ]

a. Same as livable; as, liveable conditions. Opposite of unlivable. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. Any fish of the family Poeciliiidae, small usually brightly-colored viviparous surface-feeding fishes of fresh or brackish warm waters, often used in mosquito control.
Syn. -- topminnow, poeciliid fish, poeciliid. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

a. Having life; -- used only in composition; as, long-lived; short-lived. [ 1913 Webster ]

adj. having residents; as, a house with a lived-in look.
Syn. -- inhabited, tenanted. [ WordNet 1.5 ]

n. (Bot.) A plant (Sedum Telephium) with fleshy leaves, which has extreme powers of resisting drought; garden ox-pine. [ 1913 Webster ]

n. See Livelihood. [ Obs. ] [ 1913 Webster ]