Monday, September 24, 2012

turbid



turbid [ˈtɜːbɪd] a.

1.) Of liquid: Thick or opaque with suspended matter; not clear; cloudy, muddy. Of air, smoke, clouds, etc.: Thick, dense; dark.
2.) fig. Characterized by or producing confusion or obscurity of thought, feeling, etc.; mentally confused, perplexed, muddled; disturbed, troubled (Oxford English Dictionary 2nd Edition).

Etymology: adaptation of Latin turbidus, full of confusion or disorder; troubled, muddy; perplexed, violent, etc.; from turba, crowd, disturbance.

"Once more you near me wavering apparitions,
That early showed before the turbid gaze.
Will I now seek to grant you definition,
My heart essay again the former daze?"
(Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Walter Arndt (trans.), 1976).

(Le damnation de Faust, Ignace Henri Jean Fantin-Latour, 1888)

7 comments:

D4 said...

I knew this one. I start to realize I should use the words I know more often.

demetria said...

Ohh I'm going to start using this.

Debra She Who Seeks said...

. . . as in Mitt "Turbid" Romney?

MRanthrope said...

describes The Master perfectly!

Meri said...

Interesting. I can't get the words turgid and turbinado out of my head when I see this word.

Anonymous said...

I really like this word, sounds... heavy.

PeaceLoveandSharpies said...

You know what word you should do next? Floccinaucinihilipilification. :D

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