florid
Americanadjective
-
reddish; ruddy; rosy.
a florid complexion.
- Antonyms:
- pale
-
flowery; excessively ornate; showy.
florid writing.
- Synonyms:
- gaudy, flash, rococo, grandiloquent, flamboyant
- Antonyms:
- unaffected, simple, plain
-
Obsolete. abounding in or consisting of flowers.
adjective
-
having a red or flushed complexion
-
excessively ornate; flowery
florid architecture
-
an archaic word for flowery
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of florid
1635–45; < Latin flōridus, equivalent to flōr ( ēre ) to bloom ( see florescence) + -idus -id 4
Explanation
Something that's elaborate and full of extra flourishes is florid, whether it's your relatives' ornate decorating style or the way they talk, using a lot of unnecessarily long, complicated words. Florid is an adjective that entered English in the 17th century, via the French floride, from the Latin flōridus, "blooming." You can probably guess how Florida and flourish are related! Something overly decorated, such as a fussy living room, is florid in the flowery sense, while pale-skinned people with rosy cheeks are florid because they appear to be flourishing with good health.
Vocabulary lists containing florid
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To Kill a Mockingbird
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Championship matches, which rarely last longer than 30 minutes and sometimes much less, are inevitably preceded by hours of participants making all manner of florid claims and trash-talking their opponents.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026
The inclusion of Mr. Dominé’s florid prose and his fellow citizens’ good manners are parts of what makes “Glitterball” a supremely creative example of creative documentary.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 17, 2026
His henchman Stephen Miller does know how to produce a florid turn of phrase, doesn't he?
From Salon ● Apr. 11, 2025
“Forbidden Colors” is strange and at times florid.
From New York Times ● Nov. 23, 2024
Mr. Justice Dana was a stout and florid man, dressed in a black silk robe and a great woolly white wig.
From "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Hoskins Forbes
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
