lurid

[ loor-id ]

adjective

1. gruesome; horrible; revolting:

   the lurid details of an accident.

2. glaringly vivid or sensational; shocking:

   the lurid tales of pulp magazines.

3. terrible in intensity, fierce passion, or unrestraint:

   lurid crimes.

4. lighted or shining with an unnatural, fiery glow; wildly or garishly red:

   a lurid sunset.

5. wan, pallid, or ghastly in hue; livid.

   Synonyms: murky, pale, dismal

lurid

/ ˈlʊərɪd; ˈljʊərɪd /

adjective

1. vivid in shocking detail; sensational
2. horrible in savagery or violence
3. pallid in colour; wan
4. glowing with an unnatural glare

Derived Forms

• ˈluridness, noun
• ˈluridly, adverb

Other Words From

• lurid·ly adverb
• lurid·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of lurid¹

First recorded in 1650–60, lurid is from the Latin word lūridus sallow, ghastly

Word History and Origins

Origin of lurid¹

C17: from Latin lūridus pale yellow; probably related to lūtum a yellow vegetable dye

Example Sentences

Abbasi is addressing “capitalism, truth and justice,” but he is emphasizing how lurid the American Dream is.

From Salon

That is, of course, until I walk outside, where I am reminded of my lifelong discomfort with the more lurid aspects of Halloween.

From Los Angeles Times

And yet, behind the lurid carnival barkery of Hulk Hogan and Rudy Giuliani and BeDazzled Alina Habba and the ghoulish malevolence of Stephen Miller and Tucker Carlson and Elon Musk, perhaps the enduring message here was not the blatant “banality of evil,” or even that “the cruelty is the point,” but the ease with which the enshittification of democracy itself is the real endgame of the Trump campaign.

From Slate

Flash forward 92-plus years to Donald Trump’s rally Sunday at New York’s Madison Square Garden, a bleak, lurid festival of racist hate and profane vituperation so vile that even fellow Republicans, who have turned a blind eye to Trump’s character for years, are distancing themselves from the event.

From Los Angeles Times

Davis stumbled on a text chain on Richardson’s phone showing him exchanging lurid texts with another woman, putting his by-the-by remarks about his uncontrollable tumescence into eye-opening context.

From Salon

Related Words

• exaggerated
• ghastly
• gory
• grim
• grisly
• horrifying
• macabre
• obscene
• racy
• revolting
• sensational
• startling
• violent
• vivid