rough-and-tumble vs sprightly

rough-and-tumble

adj
  • active, vigorous and rough, with the possibility of harm 

  • highly competitive 

noun
  • An environment of rough activity 

  • Rough activity; fighting or brawling; a fight. 

  • A person who characteristically engages in such activity 

verb
  • Engage in rough-and-tumble activity 

sprightly

adj
  • Especially of an older person: energetic and in good health; spry. 

  • Animated, gay, or vivacious; lively, spirited. 

  • Of a person: full of life and vigour, especially with a light and springy step. 

adv
  • In a lively and vigorous way; sprightlily. 

How often have the words rough-and-tumble and sprightly occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )