[an.i.mate] adj [ME, fr. L animatus, pp. of animare to give life to, fr. anima breath, soul; akin to OE othian to breathe, L animus spirit, Gk anemos wind, Skt aniti he breathes] (15c) 1: possessing or characterized by life: alive
2: full of life: animated
3: of or relating to animal life as opposed to plant life
4: referring to a living thing "an ~ noun" -- an.i.mate.ly adv -- an.i.mate.ness n
[2]an.i.mate vt -mat.ed ; -mat.ing (15c) 1: to give spirit and support to: encourage
2. a: to give life to b: to give vigor and zest to
3: to move to action
4. a: to make or design in such a way as to create apparently spontaneous lifelike movement b: to produce in the form of an animated cartoon syn see quicken