pellucid
Meaning
(of language or meaning) extremely clear; easy to understand.
(literary) allowing light to pass through; transparent.
Structure
Usage
The author's pellucid prose makes complex philosophical ideas accessible to a general audience.
We swam in the pellucid waters of the tropical lagoon.
Her explanation was pellucid, leaving no room for misunderstanding.
Etymology
The word pellucid is a direct borrowing from the Latin pellucidus, itself a combination of the intensive prefix per- (meaning "through") and lucidus (meaning "clear" or "bright"). The Latin lucidus stems from the verb lucere, "to shine," which is ultimately from the Proto-Indo-European root leuk-, meaning "light" or "brightness." The original literal sense was "allowing light to shine through completely," describing a perfectly transparent material. Over time, this physical clarity was metaphorically extended to describe intellectual or linguistic clarity, where an explanation or style is so clear that meaning shines through without obstruction.
Analysis
- per: A Latin prefix meaning "through, thoroughly, completely." - lucid: From Latin lucidus, meaning "clear, bright, shining." It is derived from lucere, "to shine."