Lifelike
adj.capable, joyfulprofessional
What it means
Closely resembling the appearance or behavior of something living and real.
Reach for it when praising convincing representation while leaving room to name the particular kind of accuracy
The museum's lifelike model shows how the bird folds its wings in flight.
Choose between these
7- everyday
the illusion succeeds for its audience
not when A convincing model can omit features that lifelike fidelity would preserve.
- everyday
the representation agrees with ordinary reality
not when Realistic can concern probability or expectations rather than visual resemblance.
- warm
true-to-life
recognizable fidelity matters in accessible criticism
not when True-to-life can describe behavior and story, not only physical appearance.
- professional
naturalistic
art follows observed nature instead of stylization
not when Naturalistic describes an artistic method and may still simplify fine detail.
- professional
photorealistic
image detail approaches the look of a photograph
not when Photorealistic is visual and says nothing about movement, texture, or behavior.
- formal
verisimilar
specialist criticism needs a precise claim of seeming true
not when Verisimilar is uncommon and can burden general readers.
- literary
strong detail makes a subject feel present
not when Vivid work can be imaginative or exaggerated rather than accurate.
Said against
4- artificial
- stylized
- unconvincing
- cartoonish
It naturally appears in
3- lifelike portrait
The lifelike portrait captured both the sitter's posture and quiet humor.
- remarkably lifelike
The paper flowers looked remarkably lifelike from across the room.
- lifelike movement
Lifelike movement made the training robot useful for rescue practice.
Where this comes from
- wiktionary, English adjective, resembling a living original closely sense opens in a new tab · retrieved 2026-07-26
The definition and the example on this page are written here. The dictionaries above ground which meaning is being described, not the wording.