What's the difference between
and
Enter two words to compare and contrast their definitions, origins, and synonyms to better understand how those words are related.

Lonely vs Lively - What's the difference?

lonely | lively |

As an adjective lonely

is unhappy because of feelings of loneliness.

As a proper noun lively is

.

lonely

English

Adjective

(er)
  • Unhappy because of feelings of loneliness.
  • *
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-08, volume=407, issue=8839, page=52, magazine=(The Economist)
    • , title= The new masters and commanders , passage=From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much. Those entering it are greeted by wire fences, walls dating back to colonial times and security posts. For mariners leaving the port after lonely nights on the high seas, the delights of the B52 Night Club and Stallion Pub lie a stumble away.}}
  • unfrequented by people; desolate.
  • without companions; solitary.

    • Synonyms

    * (dejected) lonesome * (unfrequented by people) desolate, desert, empty, unpeopled, unpopulated * (without companions) solitary, alone, unaccompanied

    Related terms

    * lone

    lively

    English

    Etymology 1

    From (etyl) lyvely, lifly, from (etyl) .

    Alternative forms

    * (l) (obsolete)

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Full of life; energetic.
  • * 1671 , (John Milton), (Samson Agonistes)
    • But wherefore comes old Manoa in such haste, / With youthful steps? Much livelier than erewhile / He seems.
  • * , chapter=7
    • , title= The Mirror and the Lamp , passage=[…] St.?Bede's at this period of its history was perhaps the poorest and most miserable parish in the East End of London. Close-packed, crushed by the buttressed height of the railway viaduct, rendered airless by huge walls of factories, it at once banished lively interest from a stranger's mind and left only a dull oppression of the spirit.}}
  • * {{quote-news, year=2011, date=September 29, author=Jon Smith, work=BBC Sport
    • , title= Tottenham 3-1 Shamrock Rovers , passage=But with the lively Dos Santos pulling the strings behind strikers Pavlyuchenko and Defoe, Spurs controlled the first half without finding the breakthrough their dominance deserved.}}
  • Bright; vivid; glowing; strong; vigorous.
  • * 1704 , (Isaac Newton), (Opticks): Or, A Treatise of the Reflections, Refractions, Inflections and Colours of Light
    • The colours of the prism are manifestly more full, intense, and lively that those of natural bodies.
  • * 1688 , (Robert South), Sacramental Preparation: Set forth in a Sermon on Matthew 5, 12.
    • His faith must be not only living, but lively too.
  • (archaic) Endowed with or manifesting life; living.
  • * c. 1600 , (Philemon Holland)
    • chaplets of gold and silver resembling lively flowers and leaves
  • (archaic) Representing life; lifelike.
  • * 1632 , (Philip Massinger) and (Nathan Field), (The Fatal Dowry)
    • I spied the lively picture of my father.
  • (archaic) Airy; animated; spirited.
  • * 1734 , (Alexander Pope), (An Essay on Man)
    • From grave to gay, from lively to severe.
  • (of beer) Fizzy; foamy; tending to produce a large head in the glass.
    • Usage notes
    * Nouns to which "lively" is often applied: person, character, lady, woman, man, audience, personality, art, guide, activity, game, lesson, introduction, discussion, debate, writing, image, town, city, village, etc.
    Derived terms
    * look lively

    Noun

    (livelies)
  • (nautical)
  • * 1846 , (Herman Melville), (Typee)
    • Speak the word, my livelies , and I'll pilot her in.

    Etymology 2

    From (etyl) .

    Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • (obsolete) In a lifelike manner.
  • * , III.i:
    • Him to a dainty flowre she did transmew, / Which in that cloth was wrought, as if it liuely grew.
  • *, Folio Society, 2006, vol.1, p.220-1:
    • the Painter Protogenes .
  • Vibrantly, vividly.

    • Anagrams

    * *