Dictionary definition · animate
verb
- heighten or intensify"These paintings exalt the imagination"
- give lifelike qualities to"animated cartoons"
- make lively"let's liven up this room a bit"
- give new life or energy to"A hot soup will revive me"
adjective
- belonging to the class of nouns that denote living beings"the word ‘dog’ is animate"
- endowed with animal life as distinguished from plant life"we are animate beings"
- endowed with feeling and unstructured consciousness"the living knew themselves just sentient puppets on God's stage"
Source: Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0).