From WordNet (r) 2.0 (August 2003) [wn]:
live
adj 1: actually being performed at the time of hearing or viewing;
"a live television program"; "brought to you live from
Lincoln Center"; "live entertainment involves
performers actually in the physical presence of a live
audience" [syn: unrecorded] [ant: recorded]
2: showing characteristics of life; exerting force or
containing energy; "live coals"; "tossed a live cigarette
out the window"; "got a shock from a live wire"; "live ore
is unmined ore"; "a live bomb"; "a live ball is one in
play" [ant: dead]
3: highly reverberant; "a live concert hall" [syn: {live(a)}]
4: charged with an explosive; "live ammunition"; "a live bomb"
5: rebounds readily; "clean bouncy hair"; "a lively tennis
ball"; "as resiliant as seasoned hickory"; "springy turf"
[syn: bouncy, lively, resilient, springy,
whippy]
6: abounding with life and energy; "the club members are a
really live bunch"
7: in current use or ready for use; "live copy is ready to be
set in type or already set but not yet proofread"
8: of current relevance; "a live issue"; "still a live option"
9: charged or energized with electricity; "a hot wire"; "a live
wire" [syn: hot]
10: having life; "a live canary"; "hit a live nerve"; "famous
living painters"; "living tissue";
11: capable of erupting; "a live volcano"; "the volcano is very
much alive" [syn: {alive(p)}, {live(a)}]
adv : not recorded; "the opera was broadcast live"
v 1: make one's home or live in; "She resides officially in
Iceland"; "I live in a 200-year old house"; "These
people inhabited all the islands that are now deserted";
"The plains are sparsely populated" [syn: dwell,
shack, reside, inhabit, people, populate,
domicile, domiciliate]
2: lead a certain kind of life; live in a certain style; "we
had to live frugally after the war"
3: continue to live; endure or last; "We went without water and
food for 3 days"; "These superstitions survive in the
backwaters of America"; "The racecar driver lived through
several very serious accidents" [syn: survive, last,
live on, go, endure, hold up, hold out]
4: support oneself; "he could barely exist on such a low wage";
"Can you live on $2000 a month in New York City?"; "Many
people in the world have to subsist on $1 a day" [syn:
exist, survive, subsist]
5: have life, be alive; "Our great leader is no more"; "My
grandfather lived until the end of war" [syn: be]
6: have firsthand knowledge of states, situations, emotions, or
sensations; "I know the feeling!"; "have you ever known
hunger?"; "I have lived a kind of hell when I was a drug
addict"; "The holocaust survivors have lived a nightmare";
"I lived through two divorces" [syn: know, experience]
7: pursue a positive and satisfying existence; "You must accept
yourself and others if you really want to live"
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Live \Live\ (l[i^]v), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Lived (l[i^]vd); p.
pr. & vb. n. Living.] [OE. liven, livien, AS. libban,
lifian; akin to OS. libbian, D. leven, G. leben, OHG.
leb[=e]n, Dan. leve, Sw. lefva, Icel. lifa to live, to be
left, to remain, Goth. liban to live; akin to E. leave to
forsake, and life, Gr. liparei^n to persist, liparo`s oily,
shining, sleek, li`pos fat, lard, Skr. lip to anoint, smear;
-- the first sense prob. was, to cleave to, stick to; hence,
to remain, stay; and hence, to live.]
1. To be alive; to have life; to have, as an animal or a
plant, the capacity of assimilating matter as food, and to
be dependent on such assimilation for a continuance of
existence; as, animals and plants that live to a great age
are long in reaching maturity.
[1913 Webster]
Thus saith the Lord God unto these bones; Behold, I
will . . . lay sinews upon you, and will bring up
flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put
breath in you, and ye shall live. --Ezek.
xxxvii. 5, 6.
[1913 Webster]
2. To pass one's time; to pass life or time in a certain
manner, as to habits, conduct, or circumstances; as, to
live in ease or affluence; to live happily or usefully.
[1913 Webster]
O death, how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a
man that liveth at rest in his possessions!
--Ecclus. xli.
1.
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3. To make one's abiding place or home; to abide; to dwell;
to reside; as, to live in a cottage by the sea.
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Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years.
--Gen. xlvii.
28.
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4. To be or continue in existence; to exist; to remain; to be
permanent; to last; -- said of inanimate objects, ideas,
etc.
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Men's evil manners live in brass; their virtues
We write in water. --Shak.
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5. To enjoy or make the most of life; to be in a state of
happiness; as, people want not just to exist, but to live.
[1913 Webster]
What greater curse could envious fortune give
Than just to die when I began to live? --Dryden.
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6. To feed; to subsist; to be nourished or supported; -- with
on; as, horses live on grass and grain.
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7. To have a spiritual existence; to be quickened, nourished,
and actuated by divine influence or faith.
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The just shall live by faith. --Gal. iii.
ll.
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8. To be maintained in life; to acquire a livelihood; to
subsist; -- with on or by; as, to live on spoils.
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Those who live by labor. --Sir W.
Temple.
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9. To outlast danger; to float; -- said of a ship, boat,
etc.; as, no ship could live in such a storm.
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A strong mast that lived upon the sea. --Shak.
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To live out, to be at service; to live away from home as a
servant. [U. S.]
To live with.
(a) To dwell or to be a lodger with.
(b) To cohabit with; to have intercourse with, as male
with female.
[1913 Webster]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Live \Live\ (l[imac]v), n.
Life. [Obs.] --Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]
On live, in life; alive. [Obs.] See Alive. --Chaucer.
[1913 Webster]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Live \Live\ (l[i^]v), v. t.
1. To spend, as one's life; to pass; to maintain; to continue
in, constantly or habitually; as, to live an idle or a
useful life.
[1913 Webster]
2. To act habitually in conformity with; to practice.
[1913 Webster]
To live the Gospel. --Foxe.
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To live down, to live so as to subdue or refute; as, to
live down slander.
[1913 Webster]
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:
Live \Live\ (l[imac]v), a. [Abbreviated from alive. See Alive,
Life.]
1. Having life; alive; living; not dead.
[1913 Webster]
If one man's ox hurt another's, that he die; then
they shall sell the live ox, and divide the money of
it. --Ex. xxi. 35.
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2. Being in a state of ignition; burning; having active
properties; as, a live coal; live embers. " The live
ether." --Thomson.
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3. Full of earnestness; active; wide awake; glowing; as, a
live man, or orator.
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4. Vivid; bright. " The live carnation." --Thomson.
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5. (Engin.) Imparting power; having motion; as, the live
spindle of a lathe; live steam.
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6. (Elec.) Connected to a voltage source; as, a live wire.
[PJC]
7. (Broadcasting) Being transmitted instantaneously, as
events occur, in contrast to recorded.
[PJC]
8. (Sport) Still in active play; -- of a ball being used in a
game; as, a live ball.
[PJC]
9. Pertaining to an entertainment event which was performed
(and possibly recorded) in front of an audience;
contrasted to performances recorded in a studio without an
audience.
[PJC]
Live birth, the condition of being born in such a state
that acts of life are manifested after the extrusion of
the whole body. --Dunglison.
Live box, a cell for holding living objects under
microscopical examination. --P. H. Gosse.
Live feathers, feathers which have been plucked from the
living bird, and are therefore stronger and more elastic.
Live gang. (Sawing) See under Gang.
Live grass (Bot.), a grass of the genus Eragrostis.
Live load (Engin.), a suddenly applied load; a varying
load; a moving load; as a moving train of cars on a
bridge, or wind pressure on a roof.
Live oak (Bot.), a species of oak (Quercus virens),
growing in the Southern States, of great durability, and
highly esteemed for ship timber. In California the
Quercus chrysolepis and some other species are also
called live oaks.
Live ring (Engin.), a circular train of rollers upon which
a swing bridge, or turntable, rests, and which travels
around a circular track when the bridge or table turns.
Live steam, steam direct from the boiler, used for any
purpose, in distinction from exhaust steam.
Live stock, horses, cattle, and other domestic animals kept
on a farm. whole body.
live wire
(a) (Elec.) a wire connected to a power source, having a
voltage potential; -- used esp. of a power line with a
high potential relative to ground, capable of harming
a person who touches it.
(b) (Fig.) a person who is unusually active, alert, or
aggressive.
[1913 Webster +PJC]
From Jargon File (4.4.4, 14 Aug 2003) [jargon]:
live
/li:v/, adj.,adv.
[common] Opposite of `test'. Refers to actual real-world data or a
program working with it. For example, the response to "I think the
record deleter is finished" might be "Is it live yet?" or "Have you
tried it out on live data?" This usage usually carries the
connotation that live data is more fragile and must not be corrupted,
or bad things will happen. So a more appropriate response might be:
"Well, make sure it works perfectly before we throw live data at it."
The implication here is that record deletion is something pretty
significant, and a haywire record-deleter running amok live would
probably cause great harm.