noun · 5 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
Received-Pronunciation:/ˈlaɪvlihʊd/
Southern-England:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
US:/ˈlaɪvlihʊd/
US:Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
Northern-Ireland, Scotland:/ˈlaɪvlɪhʉd/
rhymes with -aɪvlihʊd
CMU ARPABET:L AY1 V L IY0 HH UH2 D
Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
1
noun
Meaning 1
A means of providing the necessities of life for oneself (for example, a job or income).
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
Examples
an independent livelihood; to make / earn / gain / win a good livelihood by the sweat of one's brow
1716, Joseph Addison, The Free-Holder, London: D. Midwinter and J. Tonson, No. 42, Monday May 14, p. 245, Trade [...] employs Multitudes of Hands both by Sea and Land, and furnishes the poorest of our Fellow-Subjects with the Opportunities of gaining an honest Livelihood.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: living, subsistence, sustenance
Antonyms: none provided
2
noun
Meaning 2
Property which brings in an income; an estate.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: archaic, countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
3
noun
Meaning 3
Liveliness; appearance of life.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, obsolete, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
4
noun
Meaning 4
The course of someone's life; a person's lifetime, or their manner of living; conduct, behaviour.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, obsolete, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
5
noun
Meaning 5
the financial means whereby one lives
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
Examples
each child was expected to pay for their keep
he applied to the state for support
he could no longer earn his own livelihood
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: support, keep, living, bread and butter, sustenance
From Middle English liflode, from Old English līflād (“course of life, conduct”), from līf (“life”) + lād (“course, journey”), later altered under the influence of lively, -hood. Compare life, lode.
Across languages
Translations
69 source translations are retained for this English entry.
Arabic:
مَعِيشَة
(maʕīša)
— means of supporting oneself
Arabic:
مَعَاش
(maʕāš)
— means of supporting oneself
Bulgarian:
прехра́на
(prehrána)
— means of supporting oneself
Bulgarian:
препита́ние
(prepitánie)
— means of supporting oneself
Bulgarian:
средства за преживя́ване
(sredstva za preživjávane)
— means of supporting oneself
Chinese Mandarin:
生計 /生计
(shēngjì)
— means of supporting oneself
Chinese Mandarin:
飯碗 /饭碗
(fànwǎn)
— means of supporting oneself
Czech:
obživa
— means of supporting oneself
Czech:
živobytí
— means of supporting oneself
Danish:
levebrød
— means of supporting oneself
Dutch:
levensonderhoud
— means of supporting oneself
Esperanto:
vivrimedo
— means of supporting oneself
Faroese:
lívsbreyð
— means of supporting oneself
Faroese:
útkoma
— means of supporting oneself
Faroese:
lívsuppihald
— means of supporting oneself
Faroese:
livibreyð
— means of supporting oneself
Finnish:
toimeentulo
— means of supporting oneself
Finnish:
elinkeino
— means of supporting oneself
Finnish:
elanto
— means of supporting oneself
French:
gagne-pain
— means of supporting oneself
French:
subsistance
— means of supporting oneself
German:
Lebensunterhalt
— means of supporting oneself
German:
Lebensgrundlage
— means of supporting oneself
German:
Auskommen
— means of supporting oneself
German:
Existenzgrundlage
— means of supporting oneself
German:
täglich Brot
— means of supporting oneself
German:
Erwerbsquelle
— means of supporting oneself
Gothic:
𐌰𐌽𐌳𐌰𐍅𐌹𐌶𐌽𐍃
(andawizns)
— means of supporting oneself
Hebrew:
מחיה
(michyá)
— means of supporting oneself
Hindi:
जीविका
(jīvikā)
— means of supporting oneself
Hindi:
आजीविका
(ājīvikā)
— means of supporting oneself
Hungarian:
megélhetés
— means of supporting oneself
Icelandic:
lifibrauð
— means of supporting oneself
Icelandic:
viðurværi
— means of supporting oneself
Indonesian:
penghidupan
— means of supporting oneself
Irish:
slí bheatha
— means of supporting oneself
Irish:
slí mhaireachtála
— means of supporting oneself
Japanese:
生計
(seikei)
— means of supporting oneself
Korean:
생계
(saenggye)
— means of supporting oneself
Ladino:
parnasa
— means of supporting oneself
Ladino:
ganansia
— means of supporting oneself
Malayalam:
ഉപജീവനം
(upajīvanaṁ)
— means of supporting oneself
Malayalam:
ജീവിതം
(jīvitaṁ)
— means of supporting oneself
Māori:
oranga whakangakau
— means of supporting oneself
Navajo:
bee iináanii
— means of supporting oneself
Norwegian Bokmål:
utkomme
— means of supporting oneself
Norwegian Bokmål:
livsopphold
— means of supporting oneself
Norwegian Bokmål:
levebrød
— means of supporting oneself
Norwegian Nynorsk:
utkome
— means of supporting oneself
Norwegian Nynorsk:
livsopphald
— means of supporting oneself
Norwegian Nynorsk:
levebrød
— means of supporting oneself
Plautdietsch:
Läwensunjahault
— means of supporting oneself
Polish:
utrzymanie
— means of supporting oneself
Portuguese:
ganha-pão
— means of supporting oneself
Portuguese:
sustento
— means of supporting oneself
Russian:
сре́дства к существова́нию
(srédstva k suščestvovániju)
— means of supporting oneself
Russian:
пропита́ние
(propitánije)
— means of supporting oneself
Russian:
жизнь
(žiznʹ)
— means of supporting oneself
Northern Sami:
ealáhus
— means of supporting oneself
Spanish:
modus vivendi
— means of supporting oneself
Spanish:
manera/forma de ganarse la vida
— means of supporting oneself
Spanish:
modo de ganarse la vida
— means of supporting oneself
Spanish:
medio de subsistencia
— means of supporting oneself
Swedish:
försörjning
— means of supporting oneself
Swedish:
levebröd
— means of supporting oneself
Tagalog:
kabuhayan
— means of supporting oneself
Telugu:
జీవనోపాధి
(jīvanōpādhi)
— means of supporting oneself
Vietnamese:
sinh kế
— means of supporting oneself
Yiddish:
פּרנסה
(parnose)
— means of supporting oneself
