bring to life

bring (someone or something) to life

1. Literally, to revive one who has lost consciousness. After Lily fainted, we used smelling salts to bring her to life.
2. By extension, to energize someone, especially after a period of inactivity or lethargy. A: "OK, schedule Tuesday's meeting, get John on the phone, and then come in my office so we can all discuss that big project." B: "Wow, that cup of coffee really brought you to life!"
3. To revitalize something that has become dull or stale. The new CEO's creative approach really brought that failing company to life.
See also: bring, life
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

bring someone or something to life

Fig. to give vigor or vitality to someone or something; to reactivate someone or something. (See also bring something back to life.) A little singing and dancing would have brought the play to life. Some coffee will bring you to life.
See also: bring, life
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

bring to life

Enliven or energize a person or thing. For example, The promise of a big part in the play brought Jane to life, or The author's changes really brought this screenplay to life. [c. 1300] Also see come to life.
See also: bring, life
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

bring somebody/something to ˈlife

make somebody/something more lively, interesting or attractive: It was only her performance that brought the movie to life. If you put a couple of pictures on the wall it might bring the room to life a bit.
See also: bring, life, somebody, something
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

bring to life

1. To cause to regain consciousness.
2. To put spirit into; animate.
3. To make lifelike.
See also: bring, life
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition.
See also:
  • bring somebody/something to life
  • bring (someone or something) to life
  • come to
  • come to oneself
  • bring (someone or something) to
  • bring around
  • bring round
  • come (a)round
  • come around
  • come round
References in periodicals archive
Join award-winning photographers Erwin and Peggy Bauer as they bring to life the history, legend and private world of the planet's most magnificent animals.
Big beautiful cats
A spokeswoman for Arc said: "Songs, music and a range of puppets will bring to life a variety of nursery rhyme characters from Baby Bear's lost ball to naughty Jack and Jill."
Puppet fun for kids
With access to family records, correspondence and surviving veterans who knew and flew with Flatley, the book is crammed with little-known historical tidbits that bring to life the story of one of this country's premier aviators.
Ewing, Steve. Reaper Leader: The Life of Jimmy Flatley
Vincent) to bring to life the story of a community of settlers trying to build a better life for themselves on Cape Random, a harsh and remote fishing outpost in early 1800s Newfoundland.
From sea to sea: Montreal
He added that we should "celebrate the added dimension they [homosexuals] bring to life in our world...
Prairie Messenger on "gays" and lesbians (Canada)
A struggle with drugs is almost impossible to bring to life in ways that compel our interest rather than our sympathy, and when you are dramatizing the life of someone like Gia Carangi -- who seems more a totem of pre-AIDS excess than a character sufficiently complex for a full-length feature -- such a challenge can defeat even the greatest of filmakers.
Gia
Simple sentences and exuberant, bold illustrations bring to life this heartwarming story about learning to overcome and move beyond rough patches in one's friendships and everyday life.
Two Bunny Buddies
James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge's TICK TOCK (9781607888796 $34.98) receives a fine dual narration by Bobby Cannavale and Scott Sowers and whose combined, powerful voices bring to life the story of a killer's countdown, a detective pulled from his vacation with his ten adopted kids to solve the crimes, and the threat that reaches into his own home life from the 'Tick Tock Killer'.
Hachette Audio
Recipes are featured on the new and fourth season of the PBS series 'Mexico One Plate at a Time' and bring to life the flavors to be found in a daily Mexican kitchen.
Mexican Everyday
Color illustrations on every page bring to life this wild west-themed adventure, though an abundance of text makes The Return of Pete Pack Rat perfect for young readers on the cusp of making the transition to chapter books.
The Return of Pete Pack Rat