frolic means merry, joyous, full of mirth; later especially, frolicsome, sportive, full of playful mischief. It carries an Arena rating of 1692, earned across 3 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, frolic ranks #2,308 of 14,431 for Most Betrayed by Its Sound, #2,374 of 14,451 for Most Whimsical Words, #2,574 of 14,448 for Funniest Words, #2,580 of 14,456 for The Improbable.
frolic is pronounced /ˈfɹɒlɪk/.
Why “frolic” is a great word
A light, carefree, and playful joy, often expressed through spontaneous physical movement or mischief. Its lineage traces back to the Dutch vrolijk ("cheerful"), from Middle Dutch vrolijc, from Old Dutch frōlīk, from Proto-Germanic *frawalīkaz, from *frawaz ("glad") + *-līkaz ("-like, -ly"), first attested in English as an adjective c. 1530. Unlike revel, which implies boisterous, often noisy group merriment, or cavort, which suggests energetic, prancing movement, frolic is a lighter, more spontaneous, and expansive sense of delight. It is the skitter of a puppy on new grass, the sudden cartwheel on an empty sidewalk, and the conspiratorial giggle that escapes before a prank—a brief, embodied rebellion against gravity and gloom, reminding us that lightness, too, has weight enough to matter.
Etymology
From Dutch vrolijk (“cheerful”), from Middle Dutch vrolijc, from Old Dutch frōlīk, from Proto-Germanic *frawalīkaz. Compare German fröhlich (“blitheful, gaily, happy, merry”).
The first element, ultimately from Proto-Germanic *frawaz, is cognate with Middle English frow (“hasty”); the latter element, ultimately from *-līkaz, is cognate with -ly, -like.
adj
- Merry, joyous, full of mirth; later especially, frolicsome, sportive, full of playful mischief.“The frolick wind that breathes the Spring,
Zephyr with Aurora playing,
As he met her once a Maying
There on Beds of Violets blew,”
- Free; liberal; bountiful; generous.
noun
- Gaiety; merriment.“the annual jubilee […] filled the souls of old and young with visions of splendour, frolic and fun.”
- A playful antic.“He would be at his frolic once again.”
- A social gathering.“He came clattering up to the school door with an invitation to Ichabod to attend a merry-making or “quilting frolic,” to be held that evening at Mynheer Van Tassel’s”
verb
- To make merry; to have fun; to romp; to behave playfully and uninhibitedly.“We saw the lambs frolicking in the meadow.”
- To cause to be merry.
Words closest in meaning
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