arid

[ ar-id ]

/ ˈær ɪd /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR arid ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

being without moisture; extremely dry; parched: arid land; an arid climate.

barren or unproductive because of lack of moisture: arid farmland.

lacking interest or imaginativeness; sterile; jejune: an arid treatment of an exciting topic.

Nearby words

arias sánchez, arias-stella phenomenon, arias-stella reaction, ariboflavinosis, arica, arid, arid zone, aridification, aridisol, aridity index, ariel

Origin of arid

1645–55; (< F) < Latin āridus, equivalent to ār(ēre) to be dry + -idus -id⁴; cf. ash¹

Related forms

a·rid·i·ty

[uh-rid-i-tee] /əˈrɪd ɪ ti/, ar·id·ness, nounar·id·ly, adverbhy·per·ar·id, adjective

Synonym study

1. See dry.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for aridity

Those who read the voluminous song-book edited by jolly Garcia de Resende in 1516 are astonished at its narrowness and aridity.
Four Plays of Gil Vicente|Gil Vicente
The aridity of western Coahuila restricts, to a large extent, the diversity of the breeding populations of its avifauna.
Birds from Coahuila, Mexico|Emil K. Urban
After many attempts to penetrate the sand-hill region which confronted him, the heat and aridity compelled him to turn back.
The Explorers of Australia and their Life-work|Ernest Favenc
I hope the reader will understand the importance of the question and pardon me the aridity of the pages devoted to it.
The Foundations of Science: Science and Hypothesis, The Value of Science, Science and Method|Henri Poincar

That common thinness and aridity too of the Unitarian temper had weighed with him.
Robert Elsmere|Mrs. Humphry Ward

British Dictionary definitions for aridity

arid

/ (ˈærɪd) /

adjective

having little or no rain; dry; parched with heat

devoid of interest

Derived Forms

aridity (əˈrɪdɪtɪ) or aridness, nounaridly, adverb

Word Origin for arid

C17: from Latin āridus, from ārēre to be dry

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012