alacrity

[uh-lak-ri-tee] /əˈlæk rɪ ti/

noun

cheerful readiness, promptness, or willingness:

We accepted the invitation with alacrity.

liveliness; briskness.

Origin

1500-10; < Latin alacritās, equivalent to alacri(s) lively + -tās- -ty²

Related forms

alacritous, adjective

unalacritous, adjective

Synonyms

1. eagerness, keenness; fervor, zeal. 2. sprightliness, agility.

Examples from the web for alacrity

They would rush to the spot with alacrity, and ask only to be told what to do.
There's also a battle mode in the game, the object being to whack the other players with speed and alacrity.
Whether improvised or remembered, the retort certainly shows intellectual alacrity.
They informed me that my application had been received and would be reviewed with all due alacrity.
The result is that many of those species are hunted with the sort of alacrity traditionally reserved for sardines and herring.
There was no man braver than he, nor was there any who obeyed all orders of his superior in rank with more unquestioning alacrity.
The Treasury's rules don't take up this challenge with alacrity.
For their willingness to work for so little, they are accepted with alacrity.
At the very outset he took the plague; recovered, and with fresh alacrity resumed his first duties.
He's got a helluva lot on his plate, and he's acted with alacrity, intelligence and grace in handling the weighty tasks he faces.

British Dictionary definitions for alacrity

alacrity

/əˈlækrɪtɪ/

noun

liveliness or briskness

Derived Forms

alacritous, adjective

Word Origin

C15: from Latin alacritās, from alacer lively

Word Origin and History for alacrity

mid-15c., from Latin alacritatem (nominative alacritas) "liveliness, ardor, eagerness," from alacer (genitive alacris) "cheerful, brisk, lively;" of uncertain origin, perhaps cognate with Gothic aljan "zeal," Old English ellen "courage, zeal, strength," Old High German ellian.