agile

adjective

ag·​ile ˈa-jəl  -ˌjī(-ə)l 

1

: marked by ready ability to move with quick easy grace

an agile dancer

2

: having a quick resourceful and adaptable character

an agile mind

agilely

ˈa-jə(l)-lē 

-ˌjī(-ə)(l)-lē

adverb

Synonyms

• featly
• feline
• graceful
• gracile
• light
• light-footed
• light-foot
• lightsome
• lissome
• lissom
• lithe
• lithesome
• nimble
• spry

Examples of agile in a Sentence

Leopards are very fast and agile.

the expressive movements of agile dancers

Recent Examples on the Web

Elizabeth Tapia performed her Crocodile role with agile jumps and pirouettes while a half dozen Fish dancers performed a frisky conga line behind her. —Marcia Luttrell, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Feb. 2025

Tregenza’s agile camera connects characters to one another, linking actions in suspenseful chains of causality, and rooting the drama in a sense of locale, both in intimate domestic settings and in mighty, numinous landscapes. —Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 5 Feb. 2025

And, as people age the processes that protect the brain are less agile. —Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY, 3 Feb. 2025

So that ultimately is the goal to have a company which is focused in important diseases, that is more agile, more competitive, more able to fulfill our promise of bringing new medical technologies and medicines to patients faster. —Ayesha Javed, TIME, 2 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French, borrowed from Latin agilis, from agere "to drive, be in motion, do, perform" + -ilis -ile entry 1 — more at agent

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

agile

adjective

ag·​ile ˈaj-əl  -ˌīl 

1

: able to move quickly and easily : nimble

an agile gymnast

2

: mentally quick

an agile thinker

agilely

-ə(l)-lē 

-ˌī(l)-lē

adverb

agility

ə-ˈjil-ət-ē

noun

Etymology

Latin agilis "nimble, agile," from agere "to drive, act, do" — related to act, agent