ebullient

Definition

Enthusiastic; high-spirited.

Etymology

Borrowing from Latin ēbulliēns, present participle of ēbulliō (“I boil”), from bulliō (“I bubble up”) (English boil). Compare bubbling, bubbly, and perky, which use a similar metaphor.

Example Sentences

• "The Spring will come with its ebullient blood, / With flush of roses and imperial eyes"
• "Marina's oddly ebullient words seemed to come to her slow as balloons"
• "Boris Johnson, the ebullient editor of the Spectator and Tory MP for Henley, is at the centre of a Scotland Yard inquiry over an allegedly racist article by the columnist Taki which provoked death threats against a leading black lawyer."