lucid (adj.)

1590s, "bright, shining" (a sense now obsolete or restricted), from Latin lucidus "light, bright, clear," figuratively "perspicuous, lucid, clear," from lucere "to shine," from lux (genitive lucis) "light," from PIE root *leuk- "to shine, be bright."

Sense of "easy to understand, free from obscurity of meaning, marked by intellectual clarity" first recorded 1786. Lucid interval "period of calm or temporary sanity" (1580s) is from Medieval Latin lucida intervalla (plural), common in medieval legal documents (non est compos mentis, sed gaudet lucidis intervallis, etc.). The notion probably is of a period of calm and clear during a storm. Related: Lucidly; lucidness (1640s).

also from 1590s

Entries linking to lucid

lucida (n.)

in astronomy, "star easily seen by the naked eye," also "brightest star in a constellation or group," 1727, from Modern Latin lucida (stella) "bright star," from fem. of Latin lucidus "light, bright, clear" (see lucid). Plural lucidae. Astronomy has used lucid for "visible to the naked eye" since 1690s.

*leuk-

Proto-Indo-European root meaning "light, brightness."

It forms all or part of: allumette; elucidate; illumination; illustration; lea; leukemia; leuko-; light (n.) "brightness, radiant energy;" lightning; limn; link (n.2) "torch of pitch, tow, etc.;" lucent; lucid; Lucifer; luciferase; luciferous; lucifugous; lucubrate; lucubration; luculent; lumen; Luminal; luminary; luminate; luminescence; luminous; luna; lunacy; lunar; Lunarian; lunate; lunation; lunatic; lune; lunette; luni-; luster; lustrum; lux; pellucid; sublunary; translucent.

It is the hypothetical source of/evidence for its existence is provided by: Sanskrit rocate "shines;" Armenian lois "light," lusin "moon;" Greek leukos "bright, shining, white;" Latin lucere "to shine," lux "light," lucidus "clear;" Old Church Slavonic luci "light;" Lithuanian laukas "pale;" Welsh llug "gleam, glimmer;" Old Irish loche "lightning," luchair "brightness;" Hittite lukezi "is bright;" Old English leht, leoht "light, daylight; spiritual illumination," German Licht, Gothic liuhaþ "light."

Trends of lucid

adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/. Ngrams are probably unreliable.

More to Explore

transparent

early 15c., from Medieval Latin transparentem (nominative transparens), present participle of transparere "show light through," from Latin trans "across, beyond; through" (see trans-) + parere "come in sight, appear; submit, obey" (see appear). Figurative sense of "easily seen th

elucidate

clear," from assimilated form of ex "out, away" (see ex-) + lucidus "light, bright, clear," figuratively "perspicuous, lucid...

clear

distinct, resonant;" of the mind, "keen-witted, perspicacious;" of words or speech, "readily understood, manifest to the mind, lucid...

interval

early 14c., "time elapsed between two actions or events," from Old French intervalle "interval, interim" (14c.), earlier entreval (13c.) and directly from Late Latin intervallum "a space between, an interval of time, a distance," originally "space between palisades or ramparts" [

crystal

formerly also cristal, and, erroneously, chrystal, Old English cristal "clear ice; clear, transparent mineral," from Old French cristal (12c., Modern French crystal), from Latin crystallus "crystal, ice," from Greek krystallos, from kryos "frost," from PIE root *kreus- "to begin

crystal

sheepish

c. 1200, shepishe, "of, pertaining to, or resembling a sheep" in some perceived characteristic, from sheep + -ish. Originally "meek, modest, docile, simple," often as qualities of good Christians. With suggestions of "easy to deceive" by c. 1400. The sense of "bashful, over-modes

pirate

c. 1300 (mid-13c. as a surname), "a sea-robber, sea-plunderer, one who without authority and by violence seizes or interferes with the ship or property of another on the sea," especially one who is habitually engaged in such robbery or sails the seas for the robbery and plunder o

drug

late 14c., drogge (early 14c. in Anglo-French), "any substance used in the composition or preparation of medicines," from Old French droge "supply, stock, provision" (14c.), which is of unknown origin. Perhaps it is from Middle Dutch or Middle Low German droge-vate "dry barrels,"

week

Old English wucu, wice, etc., from Proto-Germanic *wikō(n)- (source also of Old Norse vika, Old Frisian wike, Middle Dutch weke, Old High German wecha, German woche), probably originally with the sense of "a turning" or "succession" (compare Gothic wikon "in the course of," Old N

Share lucid

‘cite’

Page URL:

https://www.etymonline.com/word/lucid

HTML Link:

<a href="https://www.etymonline.com/word/lucid">Etymology of lucid by etymonline</a>

APA style:

Harper, D. (n.d.). Etymology of lucid. Online Etymology Dictionary. Retrieved $(datetime), from https://www.etymonline.com/word/lucid

Chicago style:

Harper Douglas, “Etymology of lucid,” Online Etymology Dictionary, accessed $(datetime), https://www.etymonline.com/word/lucid.

MLA style:

Harper, Douglas. “Etymology of lucid.” Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com/word/lucid. Accessed $(datetimeMla).

IEEE style:

D. Harper. “Etymology of lucid.” Online Etymology Dictionary. https://www.etymonline.com/word/lucid (accessed $(datetime)).

updated on September 28, 2017

Remove ads >

Trending words

1. teacher
2. autumn
3. empathy
4. philadelphia
5. research
6. vote
7. pan
8. deluge
9. humble
10. compassion

Dictionary entries near lucid

lucency

lucent

lucern

Lucia

Lucian

lucid

lucida

lucidity

Lucifer

luciferase

luciferous