livid
playWhat It Means
Livid means "very angry, enraged, or furious."
// The child's parents were livid when they discovered she had lied about her whereabouts.
livid in Context
"… consumers … were livid about high gas prices. Gas in some markets topped $4 a gallon." — Beth Musgrave, The Lexington (Kentucky) Herald Leader, 26 May 2011
Did You Know?
Livid has a colorful history. The Latin adjective lividus means "dull, grayish, or leaden blue." From this came the French livide, which English borrowed as livid. The word can describe flesh discolored by a bruise or an appearance deficient in color. Eventually, it came to be used for the complexion of a person pale with anger (i.e., "a person livid with rage"). From this meaning came two new senses: "reddish," as one is as likely to become red with anger as pale; the other was simply "angry" or "furious."
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