Frolic Meaning
/ˈfɹɒlɪk/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjMerry, joyous, full of mirth; later especially, frolicsome, sportive, full of playful mischief.
adjFree; liberal; bountiful; generous.
Sentence Examples
I want to go for a frolic in the rain.
The children frolic in the meadow, chasing butterflies.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The children ____ in the park on a sunny afternoon.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The children enjoyed a ____ in the park, running across the grass and playing games in the sunshine.
Word Origin & History
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.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The frolick wind that breathes the Spring,
Zephyr with Aurora playing,
As he met her once a Maying
There on Beds of Violets blew,"
— 1645, John Milton, “L’Allegro”, in Poems, London: Humphrey Moseley, page 31:
"For women, born to be controul’d,
Stoop to the forward and the bold,
Affect the haughty and the proud,
The gay, the frollick, and the loud."
— 1682, Edmund Waller, “Of Love”, in Poems, &c. written upon several occasions, and to several persons, 5th edition, London: H. Herringman, published 1686, page 73:
"You meet him at the tables and conversations of the wise, the impertinent, the grave, the frolic, and the witty; [...]"
— 1766, Joseph Addison, The Spectator - Volume 5 - Page 304:
"Beale, under this frolic menace, took nothing back at all; he was indeed apparently on the point of repeating his extravagence, but Miss Overmore instructed her little charge that she was not to listen to his bad jokes [...]."
— 1897, Henry James, What Maisie Knew:
"Fools on parade frolic and fuck about to make her gaze
Turn to a scribble on a page by a picture that holds her absence
But you're daft to think she'd care"
— 2009, Alex Turner, “Secret Door”, in Humbug (album), performed by Arctic Monkeys:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The children ____ in the park on a sunny afternoon.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The children enjoyed a ____ in the park, running across the grass and playing games in the sunshine.