verve

noun

1
a
: the spirit and enthusiasm animating artistic composition or performance : vivacity
2
archaic : special ability or talent

Examples of verve in a Sentence

She played with skill and verve.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Chaumet More than any other house on Place Vendôme, Chaumet has placed nature at the heart of its creative identity, transcribing plants and flowers into precious metals and gems with verve for the past 245 years. Kate Matthams, Forbes.com, 17 July 2025 Credit goes to Margot Kidder and Gene Hackman for giving their characters a modern verve and charisma. Rory Doherty, Vulture, 11 July 2025 All of this is rendered in what feels like a series of splash pages that have somehow leapt from sketches to screen without losing an ounce of action or verve. David Fear, Rolling Stone, 8 July 2025 The powerful verve in the voice of fellow Alabama native Wilson Pickett and the acoustic-underpinned ferocity of Howlin' Wolf's stylings soon followed. Marcus K. Dowling, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for verve

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French, caprice, from Old French, word, gossip, from Vulgar Latin *verva, from Latin verba, plural of verbum word — more at word

First Known Use

1697, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of verve was in 1697

Cite this Entry

“Verve.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/verve. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.

Kids Definition

verve

noun
: lively enthusiasm

More from Merriam-Webster on verve

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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