stolid
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of stolid
First recorded in 1595–1605; from the Latin stolidus “inert, dull, stupid”
Explanation
A stolid person can’t be moved to smile or show much sign of life, in much the same way as something solid, like a giant boulder, is immovable. Both are expressionless. It's hard to get excited about the word stolid. It refers to emotionless people or things, and it even sounds pretty dull. Your face may be stolid, as you plod through the unemotional history of the word born in the 17th century of little more than Latin words for "foolish." In some definitions, stolid does have more complimentary synonyms, such as "dependable" or "calm," but these can be overshadowed by other words for stolid — "empty," "blank," and "vacant," to name a few.
Vocabulary lists containing stolid
Fahrenheit 451
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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.
Jack Morgan’s reputation for stolid rectitude was permanently undermined — “Until last Tuesday,” wrote a New York Times columnist, “Mr. Morgan was a legend.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 7, 2026
Despite his misgivings, their duets—her vocals bob and weave, while his are stolid and reassuring—immediately became hits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
The solid, stolid, self-satisfied Edwardian England that had seemed so deserving of his lashes was itself now wounded, and something in Galsworthy shifted accordingly.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 3, 2026
Perpetual sunshine has allowed the city’s multifamily housing to be opened to courtyards and parks and festooned with exterior staircases and balconies, breaking the stolid blocks of traditional apartment houses and fostering social connections.
From New York Times ● May 5, 2023
They were middle-class people, had lived all their married lives in a butter-colored middle-class ranch house in a stolid, middle-class town.
From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
