Bring Back to Life Meaning
Definition: To become alive after being dead.
This expression can mean literally resuscitating a person who has died, or it can refer to a project or place that has lost momentum and then has been given new energy or “new life.”
In this latter sense, it is about restoring vitality through an influx of time, energy, or money.
Origin of Bring Back to Life
Its exact origins are unclear, but this phrase seems to have already been a common one by the early 1800s and is expected to be understood in the following example from an 1846 copy of Ypsilanti Sentinel from Washtenaw Co., Michigan:
- She had been proud of saving lives before; but now she had saved her lover. “Zetzos!” she cried, “Zetzos! Have I then brought him back to life?”
Similarly, the Vermont Phoenix, from June 1846, reads,
- Earth responds to the voice of gratitude; and widowed mothers receive their dead brought back to life again, and wives, that have prayed for many years, have answers to their prayers in their husbands restored.
Examples of Bring Back to Life
In the modern day, it is common to say someone has been brought back to life if he or she has been given renewed energy, even if the person wasn’t dead.
For example, “Writing that book gave Samuel a new purpose and brought him back to life after his wife died.” means that he was depressed and lackluster until he began writing the book.
Also, it can be said of projects.
- The project was brought back to life after years of being on the table by a new team who took it in a slightly different direction.
It can also be said of places.
- The store was brought back to life by new advertising and the fun, energetic management by the children of the original owners. Now it is a popular destination on Main Street.
- Japanese whisky distillery is brought back to life with crowdfunding. –South China Morning Post
- Meanwhile, if it’s dinosaurs you really want to see brought back to life, you’re better off marking your calendar for 2018, when the next “Jurassic Park” sequel is scheduled for release. –The New York Post
To be brought back to life means to be revived or to be given new energy.