Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

livid


Listen Later

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for February 15, 2025 is:

livid • \LIV-id\  • adjective

Livid means "very angry, enraged, or furious." It may also describe things having a dark purplish or reddish color.

// The teen's parents were livid when they discovered she had lied about her whereabouts.

// He had a livid bruise on his right arm.

See the entry >

Examples:

"Activists and vulnerable nations were understandably livid at the failure to garner stronger commitments on the reduction of fossil fuel use, noting that ... fossil fuels are barely referenced despite being the primary driver of global emissions." — David Carlin, Forbes, 26 Nov. 2024

Did you know?

Livid has a colorful history. The Latin adjective livēre, "to be blue," gave rise to Latin lividus, meaning "discolored by bruising." French adopted the word along with its meaning as livide, which English borrowed in the 15th century as livid. For a few centuries the English word described bruised flesh as well as a shade of dark gray and other colors having a dark grayish tone. By the 18th century people were livid, first by being pale with extreme emotion ("a pale, lean, livid face" —Henry James), and then by being reddish with the same ("His face glared with a livid red." —James Francis Barrett). By the late 19th century a livid person could also be furiously angry, which is the word's typical application today.



...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

Merriam-Webster's Word of the DayBy Merriam-Webster

  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5
  • 4.5

4.5

1,160 ratings


More shows like Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day

View all
Speak English with ESLPod.com - Learn English Fast by ESLPod.com

Speak English with ESLPod.com - Learn English Fast

2,511 Listeners

TED Talks Daily by TED

TED Talks Daily

11,418 Listeners

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing by QuickAndDirtyTips.com

Grammar Girl Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing

2,827 Listeners

Science Quickly by Scientific American

Science Quickly

1,367 Listeners

Learn English | EnglishClass101.com by EnglishClass101.com

Learn English | EnglishClass101.com

857 Listeners

RealLife English: Learn and Speak Confident, Natural English by RealLife English

RealLife English: Learn and Speak Confident, Natural English

508 Listeners

All Ears English Podcast by Lindsay McMahon and Michelle Kaplan

All Ears English Podcast

2,277 Listeners

Round Table China by China Plus

Round Table China

150 Listeners

Daily Easy English Expression Podcast by Coach Shane

Daily Easy English Expression Podcast

839 Listeners

IELTS Energy English 7+ by Lindsay McMahon, Jessica Beck, Aubrey Carter

IELTS Energy English 7+

430 Listeners

Real English Conversations Podcast - Learn to Speak & Understand Real English with Confidence! by Real English Conversations: Amy Whitney & Curtis Davies - English Podcast

Real English Conversations Podcast - Learn to Speak & Understand Real English with Confidence!

412 Listeners

Life Kit by NPR

Life Kit

4,323 Listeners

The InFluency Podcast by Hadar Shemesh

The InFluency Podcast

357 Listeners

Confident Business English by Anna Connelly

Confident Business English

143 Listeners

Business English from All Ears English by Lindsay McMahon

Business English from All Ears English

72 Listeners