tepid

[tep-id]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tepid ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

moderately warm; lukewarm: tepid water.

characterized by a lack of force or enthusiasm: tepid prose; the critics' tepid reception for the new play.

Origin of tepid

1350–1400; Middle English < Latin tepidus lukewarm, equivalent to tep(ēre) to be lukewarm + -idus -id⁴

Related formste·pid·i·ty, tep·id·ness, nountep·id·ly, adverbsub·tep·id, adjectivesub·tep·id·ly, adverbsub·tep·id·ness, nounsub·te·pid·i·ty, noun

Synonyms for tepid

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR tepid ON THESAURUS.COM

1 moderate, mild. 2. unemotional, halfhearted, apathetic.

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

Related Words for tepidly

indifferently, delicately, moderately, quietly, lightly, calmly, gingerly, kindly, patiently, softly, tenderly, blandly, compassionately, genially, imperturbably, meekly, soothingly, temperately, tolerantly, tranquilly

Examples from the Web for tepidly

Contemporary Examples of tepidly

Emin seemed pleasant, tepidly confident, and, dare I say, even a tad uncool—but in a good way.
Has Tracey Emin Gone Soft?
Rachel Wolff
November 5, 2009

Historical Examples of tepidly

Bors reviewed his actions and could not but approve of them tepidly.
Talents, Incorporated
William Fitzgerald Jenkins
"I think Mrs. Varick is sorry to see that you have broken your promise," said Kindelon, shortly and tepidly.
The Adventures of a Widow
Edgar Fawcett
The peculiar moving hush and tepidly stagnant air of a sick-room penetrated even through the panels.
Joan of the Sword Hand
S(amuel) R(utherford) Crockett
It was obvious that he was tepidly in love with Maud, or rather that he was anxious she should be in love with him.
The Romance of His Life
Mary Cholmondeley
“I hope you managed to get a little sleep, Mr. Melhuish,” Mrs. Jervaise said tepidly.
The Jervaise Comedy
J. D. Beresford

British Dictionary definitions for tepidly

tepid

adjective

slightly warm; lukewarm

relatively unenthusiastic or apatheticthe play had a tepid reception

Derived Formstepidity or tepidness, nountepidly, adverb

Word Origin for tepid

C14: from Latin tepidus, from tepēre to be lukewarm

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

Word Origin and History for tepidly

tepid

adj.

c.1400, from Latin tepidus "lukewarm," from tepere "be warm," from PIE root *tep- "warm" (cf. Sanskrit tapati "makes warm, heats, burns," tapah "heat;" Avestan tafnush "fever;" Old Church Slavonic topiti "to warm," teplu "warm;" Old Irish tene "fire;" Welsh tes "heat").