English Reference
Adjective

frisky

adj.
B2 Upper Intermediate US /ˈfɹɪski/ UK /fɹˈɪski/ frisky

adj.full of energy and ready to play or have fun. You use this to describe someone who is very active and excited, especially a child or a young animal.

adj.characterised by a high level of energy, playfulness, or sexual excitement.


SIMPLE

The children were so frisky after their long nap.

CONTEXTUAL

After a week of heavy rain, the puppies were unusually frisky and kept running through the garden.

COMPLEX

The young actor was famously frisky during the opening night, constantly making jokes with the audience and forgetting his lines in the process.

Between 1972 and 81, he appeared in more than 100 episodes of peak-time ITV comedies as funny, frisky men in their 20s and 30s.

The Guardian· 4 Sept 2026

From frisk + -y.

Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This entry
Level B2 · Upper Intermediate
Frequency Occasional
Updated