livid
[ liv-id ]
/ ˈlɪv ɪd /
adjective
having a discolored, bluish appearance caused by a bruise, congestion of blood vessels, strangulation, etc., as the face, flesh, hands, or nails.
dull blue; dark, grayish-blue.
enraged; furiously angry: Willful stupidity makes me absolutely livid.
feeling or appearing strangulated because of strong emotion.
reddish or flushed.
deathly pale; pallid; ashen: Fear turned his cheeks livid for a moment.
Origin of livid
1615–25; < Latin
līvidus black and blue, equivalent to
līv(
ēre) to be livid (akin to Welsh
lliw color) +
-idus
-id4
historical usage of livid
Livid “bluish, dull blue, grayish-blue” ultimately comes from Latin
līvidus “dull blue, grayish-blue, discolored by bruising” (equivalent to English
black and blue ), also meaning “spiteful, malicious” (in Latin one is blue with jealousy, not green).
In the early 18th century, English livid somehow developed the further senses “pale, deathly pale,” as from cold or in death, with no connotation of blueness. Then in the first half of the 19th century, livid came to mean “pale with rage or fury,” which is confusing because an angry person’s face can just as well be described as “purple with rage” or “red with fury.” Livid finally acquired the simple meaning “enraged, furiously angry” in the late 19th century.
Līvidus comes from the same Proto-Indo-European root slī- (suffixed form slī-wo- ) “bluish” as appears in Old English slāh (English sloe, as in sloe gin fizz, a drink that has never gone away). Slī-wo- appears in Slavic (Serbo-Croatian) šljiva “plum” (from its color), from which the pale fruit brandy šljivovica “slivovitz” is distilled.
In the early 18th century, English livid somehow developed the further senses “pale, deathly pale,” as from cold or in death, with no connotation of blueness. Then in the first half of the 19th century, livid came to mean “pale with rage or fury,” which is confusing because an angry person’s face can just as well be described as “purple with rage” or “red with fury.” Livid finally acquired the simple meaning “enraged, furiously angry” in the late 19th century.
Līvidus comes from the same Proto-Indo-European root slī- (suffixed form slī-wo- ) “bluish” as appears in Old English slāh (English sloe, as in sloe gin fizz, a drink that has never gone away). Slī-wo- appears in Slavic (Serbo-Croatian) šljiva “plum” (from its color), from which the pale fruit brandy šljivovica “slivovitz” is distilled.
OTHER WORDS FROM livid
liv·id·ly, adverb liv·id·ness, li·vid·i·ty, nounWords nearby livid
Example sentences from the Web for livid
British Dictionary definitions for livid
livid
/ (ˈlɪvɪd) /
adjective
(of the skin) discoloured, as from a bruise or contusion
of a greyish tinge or colour
livid pink
informal
angry or furious
Derived forms of livid
lividly, adverb lividness or lividity, nounWord Origin for livid
C17: via French from Latin
līvidus, from
līvēre to be black and blue
Medical definitions for livid
livid
[ lĭv′ĭd ]
adj.
Having a black-and-blue or a leaden or ashy-gray color, as in discoloration from a contusion, congestion, or cyanosis.