life

noun lives · lyfe

1. uncountable, usually The state of organisms preceding their death, characterized by biological processes such as metabolism and reproduction and distinguishing them from inanimate objects; the state of being alive and living. I want my kids to live a good life.  He gave up on life.
2. uncountable, usually The status possessed by any of a number of entities, including animals, plants, fungi, bacteria, and sometimes viruses, which have the properties of replication and metabolism.
3. uncountable, usually The animating principle or force that keeps an inorganic thing or concept metaphorically alive (dynamic, relevant, etc) and makes it a "living document", "living constitution", etc. The life of the law has not been logic; it has been experience.
4. uncountable, usually Lifeforms, generally or collectively. It's life, but not as we know it. She discovered plant life on the planet. The rover discovered signs of life on the alien world.
5. countable, usually A living being; the fact of a particular individual being alive. (Chiefly when indicating individuals were lost (died) or saved.) Many lives were lost during the war. Her quick thinking saved many dogs' lives.
6. uncountable, usually Existence. Life is meaningless and we are all going to die.
7. uncountable, usually A worthwhile existence. He gets up early in the morning, works all day long — even on weekends — and hardly sees his family. That's no life!  His life was ruined by drugs.
8. uncountable, usually A particular aspect of existence. He struggled to balance his family life, social life and work life.
9. informal, uncountable, usually A social life. Get a life.
10. uncountable, usually Something which is inherently part of a person's existence, such as job, family, a loved one, etc. She's my love, my life. Running the bakery is her life.
11. uncountable, usually The period during which one (a person, an animal, a plant; a civilization, species; a star; etc) is alive. “My Continental prominence is improving,” I commented dryly. Von Lindowe cut at a furze bush with his silver-mounted rattan. “Quite so,” he said as dryly, his hand at his mustache. “I may say if your intentions were known your life would not be worth a curse.”
12. uncountable, usually The span of time during which an object operates. Even if the bill's life is brief, the member who introduced it can still campaign as its champion.
13. uncountable, usually The period of time during which an object is recognizable. The life of this milk carton may be thousands of years in this landfill.
14. uncountable, usually A particular phase or period of existence. This would require that reproductive cells do not exist early on but rather are produced during the organism's adult life from the gemules sent from the various organs.
15. uncountable, usually A period extending from a when a (positive or negative) office, punishment, etc is conferred on someone until that person dies (or, sometimes, reaches retirement age). Typically, an appointed judge is appointed for life.
16. colloquial, uncountable, usually A life sentence; a period of imprisonment that lasts until the convict's death (or, sometimes, parole).
17. uncountable, usually Animation; spirit; vivacity. No notion of life and fire in fancy and in words.
18. uncountable, usually The most lively component or participant. "Don't I know that it is you who is the life of this house. Two delightful children!"
19. uncountable, usually A biography. His life of the founder is finished, except for the title.
20. uncountable, usually Nature, reality, and the forms that exist in it. The stories did not seem to me to touch life. They were plainly intended to have a bracing moral effect, and perhaps had this result for the people at whom they were aimed. They left me with the impression of a well-delivered stereopticon lecture, with characters about as life-like as the shadows on

    Similar: existence, experience

21. uncountable, usually An opportunity for existence. The photo book represented my promise to her—a new life—and she desperately clung to that promise.
22. uncountable, usually One of the player's chances to play, lost when the player's character dies or when certain mistakes are made. Scoring 1000 points is rewarded with an extra life.
23. uncountable, usually A chance for the batter (or batting team) to bat again, given as a result of a misplay by a member of the fielding team. Borda sent a hot liner to G. Kugler, who made a nifty pick-up, but threw wild at first, giving the batter a life.
24. uncountable, usually One of a player's chances to play in various games, lost when a mistake is made, for example being struck by the ball in dodgeball. He spent the evening in the billiard-room, smoking one cigar after another, and losing “lives” at pool.
25. uncountable, usually The life insurance industry. I work in life.
26. countable, usually A life assured under a life assurance policy (equivalent to the policy itself for a single life contract). He renewed two lives which had dropped.

Similar: the world in general · Opposite: death, coma, void

verb lifes · lifing · lifed · lyfe

1. To replace components whose operational lifetime has expired. Now, the aim of the design is to extract more cycles from the component under study, at each new engine generation requirements are driving a reduction in the margin for the error, as parts cannot stand any drop in properties. Thus, the lifing procedures are refined by means of new models or additio

interjection lyfe

1. obsolete Synonym of God's life (an oath).

   Similar: God's life

proper noun

1. God. Then one deep love doth supersede ⁠All other, when her ardent gaze ⁠Roves from the living brother’s face, And rests upon the Life indeed.
2. Conway's Game of Life. Basically, I'm looking for a fast (the fastest?) way of updating grids, where each cell has to look at an arbitrary number of its neighbors. I've seen some fast life-programs, but often they took advantage of particular quirks of the rules of Life.

proper noun Lifes

1. A surname.