vigorously
Americanadverb
-
with active strength or force; energetically or powerfully: Fast food is marketed vigorously through heavy television advertising.
Combine all ingredients in the cocktail shaker and shake vigorously until the egg white is foamy.
Fast food is marketed vigorously through heavy television advertising.
-
with robust health or vitality.
Many plant species that don’t do well in shaded conditions will grow vigorously in full sunlight.
Other Word Forms
- overvigorously adverb
- supervigorously adverb
- unvigorously adverb
Etymology
Origin of vigorously
Explanation
When you do something in a forceful or intense way, you do it vigorously. If you're trying to figure out which of your brothers ate the last of the cookies, it's probably the one who's denying it most vigorously. The adverb vigorously has the English root "vigor," which comes from the Latin word vigere, meaning to be lively or flourish. Synonyms for vigorously include energetically, forcefully, and strenuously. If you're trying to lose weight, you should eat fewer cookies and walk vigorously every day, and if you want to get your dishes really clean, you'll have to scrub them vigorously.
Vocabulary lists containing vigorously
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
His attorneys say they will "vigorously defend his innocence".
From BBC • Apr. 22, 2026
“We stand by our reporting on Kash Patel, and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit,” the publication said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 20, 2026
"We stand by our reporting on Kash Patel, and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit," the magazine said in a statement.
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2026
The former congressman has flatly and vigorously denied criminal wrongdoing while acknowledging and apologizing for unspecific “mistakes.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026
Going up to Phil Resch—who stood off to one side vigorously smoking a small gray cigar—he said to him, “I hope to god you do test out as an android.”
From "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" by Philip K. Dick
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
