placid

[plas-id]

adjective

1. pleasantly calm or peaceful; unruffled; tranquil; serenely quiet or undisturbed.

   placid waters;

   a placid temperament.

2. showing lack of energy or concern.

   It is difficult to understand her relatively placid acceptance of the truth and its impact on her future.

   Emotions ebbed from anger into placid resignation with the passage of time.

placid

/ pləˈsɪdɪtɪ, ˈplæsɪd /

adjective

1. having a calm appearance or nature

Other Word Forms

• placidity noun
• placidness noun
• placidly adverb
• unplacid adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of placid¹

First recorded in 1620–30; from Latin placidus “calm, quiet,” akin to placēre “to seem good, please” (originally, “to calm”); please, -id ⁴

Word History and Origins

Origin of placid¹

C17: from Latin placidus peaceful; related to placēre to please

Synonym Study

See peaceful.

Example Sentences

This is not a placid sports city cherished for its patience.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Lilac Hill has a placid surface, far removed from what England can expect to face at Optus Stadium next week.

Read more on BBC

The placid if slightly stupid day nurse is a cow; the surgeon has the head of a yapping terrier; the junior nurse is a “prancing kitten.”

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The Cboe Group’s VIX index was last marked 18% lower from last Friday’s close, but is still trading north of the 20 point mark that generally separates placid markets from turbulent ones.

Read more on Barron's

The setting is a placid pond, on whose banks sits a plump and serene fellow in a kimono, his eyes closed.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• easygoing 
• even-tempered 
• gentle 
• peaceful 
• quiet 
• serene 
• tranquil 

When To Use

What does placid mean?

Placid means calm, peaceful, quiet, and undisturbed. A close synonym is tranquil.Placid is used to describe things that have a calm appearance or a calm nature, such as a placid pond whose surface is perfectly still.When placid is used to describe people, it can mean that they’re very calm and even-tempered. However, placid can also mean showing a lack of energy or concern. Describing a person as placid in this way is often done to criticize them for not caring enough to take action in a situation that calls for action to be taken, as in You shouldn’t be so placid about injustice—you should do something about it instead of just ignoring it.   When placid is used to describe animals, like dogs or cats, it usually means they stay calm and don’t get aggressive, as in Hospital patients are calmed by the old dog’s placid nature. The state of being placid is called placidity.Example: I love the sight of the lake’s placid waters at sunrise.