alive and kicking
Active and healthy. A: "How are you doing after your surgery?" B: "I'm alive and kicking!" I thought for sure that old dog wouldn't survive the winter, but he's still alive and kicking! I can't believe that crochety old man down the street is still alive and kicking. He must be nearing 100 these days!
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
alive and kicking
and alive and wellFig. well and healthy. Jane: How is Bill since his illness last month? Mary: Oh; he's alive and kicking. The last time I saw Tom, he was alive and well.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
alive and kicking
Also, alive and well. Alive and alert; living and healthy. For example, John's completely recovered; he's alive and kicking, or You're quite mistaken; our lawyer is alive and well. The first expression, sometimes shortened to live and kicking, originally was used by fishmongers hawking their wares to convince customers of their freshness and has been considered a cliché since about 1850. The variant originated in the 1960s as a denial of someone's reported death.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
alive and kicking
COMMON If someone or something is alive and kicking, they are still active or still exist. I'm alive and kicking and still going strong. Romance is still alive and kicking for a couple who will be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this week.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
alive and kicking
prevalent and very active. informal 1991 Mark Tully No Full Stops in India You deliberately choose unknown actors, although India is a country where the star system is very much alive and kicking.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
aˌlive and ˈkicking
(informal) still existing and strong or active: The old prejudices were still very much alive and kicking.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
alive (live) and kicking (well)
Very much alive and alert; still surviving. The term originated with fishmongers who thus described their wares, meaning that they were extremely fresh. By the mid-nineteenth century it was considered a cliché. A more recent version is alive and well, which originated as a denial to a false report of someone’s death. It was given a boost by the French singer Jacques Brel, whose show and recording, translated as Jacques Brel Is Alive and Well and Living in Paris, became immensely popular in the 1970s.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer