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Vigorously

adv. energetic, resilient everyday

What it means

Meaning 1

With strong physical energy or force.

Reach for it when describing active movement or growth performed with substantial strength

The climbers rubbed their hands vigorously before handling the cold rope.

Meaning 2

With forceful determination or intensity.

Reach for it when describing advocacy, defense, testing, or disagreement pursued strongly

Residents argued vigorously for keeping the night bus.

Words to choose between 8

By register, from playful at the top to literary at the bottom, and by meaning across. Tap a word to see when it fits.
Meaning 1Meaning 2
everyday
professional
formal

Meaning 1: With strong physical energy or force.

  • everyday

    briskly

    Fits when quick, purposeful movement is the exact manner

    Careful Briskly stresses speed, not strength.

  • everyday

    energetically

    Fits when lively activity matters more than force

    Careful Energetically may describe busy movement that lacks vigorous strength.

  • professional

    forcefully

    Fits when physical pressure or strong impact is central

    Careful Forcefully can imply coercion and may be unsafe praise for bodily action.

  • formal

    strenuously

    Fits when great exertion and effort are visible

    Careful Strenuously implies difficulty and can sound unhealthy where vigorous action feels easy.

Meaning 2: With forceful determination or intensity.

  • everyday

    strongly

    Fits when a firm position should be stated without flourish

    Careful Strongly can modify feeling or belief without any active effort.

  • professional

    robustly

    Fits when a method or claim withstands demanding scrutiny

    Careful Robustly sounds technical and is unnatural for campaigning or conversation.

  • formal

    determinedly

    Fits when persistence matters more than volume or force

    Careful Determinedly can describe quiet progress with little vigor.

  • formal

    vehemently

    Fits when intense conviction appears in speech

    Careful Vehemently often suggests anger and is too heated for constructive advocacy.

Opposites 4

  • weakly
  • gently
  • halfheartedly
  • passively

Common phrases 3

  • exercise vigorously

    People who exercise vigorously still need recovery and accessible alternatives.

  • vigorously defend

    The editor will vigorously defend the source's right to anonymity.

  • vigorously opposed

    The demolition was vigorously opposed at the public hearing.

Word family 1

Definitions and examples are written for this site. How words are chosen Recording: Vealhurl, Southern England accent, from Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 Updated