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Vinony

sprightly

adverb

No English definition recorded for this entry.

L200049 on Wikidata ↗

adjective

No English definition recorded for this entry.

L340695 on Wikidata ↗

Wiktionary

Pronunciation: /ˈspɹaɪtli/

adj

Etymology: From spright + -ly (suffix forming adjectives with the sense ‘behaving like, having the nature of’). Spright is an obsolete variant of sprite (“a shade, spirit; elf, fairy, goblin; apparition, ghost”), from Middle English sprit (“principle of life; soul, especially at the point of death; immaterial being (angel, demon, apparition, ghost, etc.); divine inspiration; Holy Spirit; the mind, intellect, reason; mental faculties, senses; power of prophecy; character, disposition; courage, resolution; mood, state of mind; human will; breath; (alchemy) volatile substance”) [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman esprite, esprit and Middle French esprit, variants of Anglo-Norman, Middle French, Old French espirit, esperit (“spirit”), from Latin spīritus (“air; breath; breathing; ghost, spirit”), from spīrō (“to breathe; to breathe out, exhale”) (from Proto-Indo-European *(s)peys- (“to blow; to breathe”)) + -tus (“suffix forming verbal nouns from verbs”).

  1. Animated, gay, or vivacious; lively, spirited.

    “Next vnto lumpish Saturn, sprightlie Iove / Moves in his orbe.”

    “And ſhou’d Apollo novv deſcend and vvrite, / In Vertue’s Praiſe ’tvvou’d never paſs for Wit. / The Bookſeller perhaps vvou’d ſay, / ’Tvvas vvell: / But ’Tvvou’d not hit the Times, ’Tvvou’d never Sell: / Unleſs a Spice of Levvdneſs cou’d appear, / The ſprightly part vvou’d ſtill be vvanting there. / […] / ’Tis Love and Honour muſt enrich our Verſe, / The Modern Terms, our VVhoring to rehearſe. / The ſprightly part attends the God of VVine, / The Drunken Stile muſt blaze in every Line.”

  2. Of a person: full of life and vigour, especially with a light and springy step.

    “Shall our example ſloth create, / And make our Sons degenerate? / Our ſprightly youth uſeleſs in War become, / And ſleep in peace and ſlavery at home.”

    “This youth was ance a sprightlie boy / As ever lived in Linne.”

  3. Of a person: full of life and vigour, especially with a light and springy step.
  4. Of or relating to a sprite; ghostly, spectral.

    “[…] As I ſlept, me thought / Great Iupiter vpon his Eagle back'd / Appear'd to me, with other ſprightly ſhewes / Of mine owne Kindred.”

adv

Etymology: From spright + -ly (suffix forming adverbs from adjectives).; see further at etymology 1.

  1. In a lively and vigorous way; sprightlily.