animate
/ˈæn.ə.mət/adjective, verb
animate is spelled A-N-I-M-A-T-E: 7 letters and 3 syllables. It appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 24,170th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, animate means “That lives” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in animate?
| Letters | 7: A-N-I-M-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 1.4 times per million words; the 24,170th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is animate?
Animate appears 1.4 times per million words in written English, the 24,170th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce animate?
- UK /ˈæn.ɪ.mət/
- US /ˈæn.ə.mət/
As a verb (“To impart motion or the appearance of motion to”): /ˈæn.ɪ.meɪt/, /ˈæn.ə.meɪt/.
Animate has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-animate-adj.ogg, En-us-animate-verb.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of animate
- more animate comparative
- most animate superlative
- animates present, singular, he/she/it
- animating participle, present
- animated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does animate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
That lives.
- 2
That has (or is believed to have) a spirit (anima) and/or some amount of consciousness and sentience, either being alive or supernaturally seeming alive.
- 3
Possessing the quality or ability of motion.
- 4
Dynamic, energetic.
She is an engaging and animate speaker.
- 5
having a referent that is considered alive (this generally includes humans, animals and deities, sometimes also plants, spirits, etc.)
Nouns can be singular or plural, and one of two genders, animate or inanimate.
- 6
Inflected to agree with an animate noun or pronoun.
verb
- 1
To impart motion or the appearance of motion to.
leaves animated by a stiff breeze
- 2
To give spirit or vigour to; to stimulate or enliven; to inspirit.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Animate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | lebendig, beseelt , bewegt , lebhaft , belebt , beleben |
| Portuguese | animado , animar |
| Spanish | animado , animar , animarse |
| French | animé , animer |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does animate come from?
From Middle English animat(e), from Latin animātus, perfect passive participle of animō (“to fill with breath, quicken, encourage, animate”) (see -ate (adjective-forming suffix)), from anima (“soul, spirit, breath”); see anima. The verb derives from the adjective, see -ate (verb-forming suffix).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).