Raring

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Having a robust eagerness and excitement to begin a specific activity or event Showing a notable readiness and willingness to engage in a forthcoming task Exhibiting an intense and impatient desire to start something new or participate actively in an event
2. Feeling a strong, enthusiastic impulse to begin an activity or event
3. Displaying keen readiness and anticipation to take part in something ahead

Etymology: "Raring" is an adjective built on "rare," an old verb meaning to raise or rouse, which is a variant of "rear." The sense of the word as it is used today, eager and ready to begin something, grows out of that idea of being roused or stirred up for action. The phrase "raring to go" shows the pattern most clearly: someone who is raring is, in effect, rising up in readiness. The verb "rare" itself is an older form of "rear," which in its basic sense meant to lift something upward or bring it up from a lower position. From that physical lifting came the figurative idea of raising or arousing a person's spirits or energies, and "raring" carries that sense of being stirred up and set on edge with eagerness.

Synonyms: eager, enthusiastic, excited

Antonyms: apathetic, indifferent, unenthusiastic