Basic Details
Word: Lurid
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Too bright in colour in an unpleasant way; also describes a story or report full of shocking, violent or unpleasant details.
Synonyms: garish, gaudy, sensational, shocking
Antonyms: dull, muted, sober
Word origin: Comes from Latin luridus, pale yellow or ghastly.
How to Spell Lurid
Syllables: lu - rid
Tricky part: The vowel after l is a single u, not oo or ou, there is only one r, and it ends in id.
Watch out for: lourid, lurrid, loorid
Memory tip: Lurid belongs to a family of short id adjectives: lucid, livid, humid, rigid. Each has a single consonant before id, so lurid takes just one r.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The comic had a lurid cover with a green monster and red flames.
Example 2: Some websites print lurid stories just to get more clicks.
Example 3: The sky turned a lurid orange as the forest fire spread.
Fun Fact
When lurid first came into English in the 1600s it meant pale and sickly yellow, nearly the opposite of the loud, glaring colours it often describes today.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the word closest in meaning to lurid as used in the sentence:
The film poster used lurid shades of pink and lime green to grab the attention of passers-by.
a) gentle
b) garish
c) muted
d) faded
Show answer
b) garish. Lurid colours are loud and harsh, just like garish ones; muted and faded mean the opposite.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the word in the sentence and choose it:
The tabloid printed a riuld account of the robbery, full of details that nobody could check.
a) rigid
b) livid
c) lurid
d) florid
Show answer
c) lurid. Only lurid has a u among these letters; livid has a v, rigid a g and florid an f and o.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
lurrid
a) u
b) i
c) d
d) r
Show answer
d) r. Lurid has one r only, lu-rid.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Newspaper reports described as lurid are usually ____.
a) full of shocking details
b) written for young children
c) only about the weather
d) short and very dull
Show answer
a) full of shocking details
2. Choose the word that completes the sentence: The smell of hot jalebis ____ us into the sweet shop.
a) lugged
b) lurid
c) lured
d) lurked
Show answer
c) lured
