lucidity

American  

[loo-sid-i-tee] / luˈsɪd ɪ ti /

Sometimes lucidness

noun

1. the quality of being easily understood, completely intelligible, or comprehensible.

   She makes her argument with pointed logic and exemplary lucidity.

2. the ability to see things clearly; rationality; sanity.

   In a rare moment of lucidity, the senator sided with his political enemies for the good of the country.

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Other Word Forms

• nonlucidity
  noun

Etymology

Origin of lucidity

First recorded in 1650–60; from Latin lūciditās, equivalent to lūcid(us) lucid ( def. ) + -i- ( def. ) + -tās -ty ² ( def. )

Explanation

A good word definition should be characterized by its lucidity, or clarity. In other words, it should be clear and easy to understand — like this one. Lucidity comes from the Latin lucidus meaning "light, bright, clear." Certainly when something is light, bright, and clear, it's ripe with the quality of lucidity. An easy-to-read textbook is characterized by lucidity. A person too can possess a quality of lucidity, one that would allow her to express ideas as clearly as possible.

Example Sentences

Lucidity is a test of integrity, as Orwell insisted in “Politics and the English Language.”

From The New Yorker • Dec. 16, 2019

Lucidity does not, however, suffice here; this is an unfortunately tepid program.

From New York Times • Jun. 28, 2012

Lucidity and balance were paramount in Mr. DePreist’s broadly paced interpretation of Mahler’s Symphony No. 5: a benefit in delineating structure and narrative flow, if less so in passages that wanted a more manic charge.

From New York Times • Mar. 28, 2011

The Mallomar metalists, Queensryche, got themselves near the chart top with Silent Lucidity, a tune about spelunking through the subconscious.

From Time Magazine Archive

With no hope of funds, an age was ended; the Novanglian College of Lucidity was to change forever.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson

Related Words

• clarity