livid

livid
adjective
liv·;id ;li-v;d
Synonyms of livid
1
: discolored by bruising : black-and-blue
the livid traces of the sharp scourges
—Abraham Cowley
2
: ashen, pallid
this cross, thy livid face, thy pierced hands and feet
—Walt Whitman
3
: reddish
a fan of gladiolas blushed livid under the electric letters
—Truman Capote
4
: very angry : enraged
was livid at his son's disobedience
lividness
;li-v;d-n;s
 noun


Did you know?
Livid has a colorful history. The Latin adjective liv;re, "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.

Synonyms
angered
angry
apoplectic
ballistic
cheesed off [chiefly British]
choleric
enraged
foaming
fuming
furious
hopping
horn-mad
hot
incensed
indignant
inflamed
enflamed
infuriate
infuriated
irate
ireful
mad
outraged
rabid
rankled
riled
riley
roiled
shirty [chiefly British]
sore
steamed up
steaming
teed off
ticked
wrathful
wroth
Examples of livid in a Sentence
the boss was livid when yet another deadline was missed
her face was livid with fear
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Democrats, for their part, are livid over Musk's early flex, accusing Republicans of being pawns to an oligarch.
—Tal Axelrod, ABC News, 19 Dec. 2024
Leila, on the other hand, was still as livid at the family’s decision as if it had been made mere moments ago in an adjacent room.
—Youmna Melhem Chamieh, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
Many in the Penguins organization were still livid about that call following the game.
—Josh Yohe, The Athletic, 9 Jan. 2025
Bengals fans were livid, saying the Chiefs were afraid to face Cincinnati in the playoffs.
—Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 8 Jan. 2025

Word History
Etymology
French livide, from Latin lividus, from liv;re to be blue; akin to Welsh lliw color and probably to Russian sliva plum

First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of livid was in the 15th century
See more words from the same century
Podcast
Cover Image
livid
 
 
 
 
 Subscribe
Subscribe
 Amazon Music
 Apple Podcasts
 Spotify
 Stitcher
 RSS
 Download

00:00 / 01:52
 Privacy Policy
Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!
Your email address
Sign Up
Dictionary Entries Near livid
liveyere

livid

livid brown

Cite this Entry
Style

MLA
“Livid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/livid. Accessed 15 Feb. 2025.

Copy Citation
Share
Post the Definition of livid to Facebook
Facebook
Share the Definition of livid on Twitter
Twitter
Kids Definition
livid

adjective
liv·;id ;liv-;d
1
: discolored by bruising
2
: pale as ashes
3
: very angry
lividly adverb

Medical Definition
livid

adjective
liv·;id ;liv-;d
: discolored by bruising : black-and-blue