animal spirits

American  

noun

1. exuberance arising from an excess of energy; vivacity and good humor.

   The children romped on the lawn, full of animal spirits.

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animal spirits British  

plural noun

1. cheerful and exuberant boisterousness

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Etymology

Origin of animal spirits

First recorded in 1535–45

Example Sentences

“Failing to incorporate animal spirits into the model can blind us to the real sources of trouble.”

From Barron's • Mar. 11, 2026

None of this means that the investment markets’ performance is always driven by animal spirits.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 6, 2026

Many banks on Wall Street had started 2025 talking about animal spirits in the form of increased mergers and acquisitions and capital markets activity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 13, 2026

There is some space for green shoots to sprout now, or at least for the animal spirits of the economy to emerge from non-stop chaos.

From BBC • Nov. 26, 2025

She had high animal spirits, and a sort of natural self-consequence, which the attentions of the officers, to whom her uncle’s good dinners and her own easy manners recommended her, had increased into assurance.

From "Pride and Prejudice" by Jane Austen