extemporize
Definitions
To speak, perform, or compose without preparation; to improvise
即兴演讲、表演或创作；临时发挥
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedex- (out of) + tempor (time) + -ize (to do/make) = 'to do something out of prepared time,' i.e. to improvise. Built from the Latin phrase ex tempore ('out of the time'): producing speech or music on the spot, without the preparation that time would normally allow.
Root tempor still carries 7 more wordsCommon Collocations
- 1.extemporize a speech即兴演讲
- 2.extemporize on a theme就某主题即兴发挥
- 3.extemporize at the piano在钢琴上即兴演奏
Example Sentences
- 1.
When the projector failed, she had to extemporize for twenty minutes.
- 2.
Jazz musicians love to extemporize over a simple chord progression.
- 3.
He forgot his notes but managed to extemporize a convincing argument.
Synonym Comparison
- extemporize — formal: to improvise speech, music, or argument on the spot
- improvise — the everyday word for the same idea, far more common
- ad-lib — to add unscripted words, especially in acting or broadcasting
- wing it — informal: to do something without preparation and hope it works