turbid

[tur-bid]

adjective

not clear or transparent because of stirred-up sediment or the like; clouded; opaque; obscured: the turbid waters near the waterfall.

thick or dense, as smoke or clouds.

confused; muddled; disturbed.

Origin of turbid

1620–30; < Latin turbidus disturbed, equivalent to turb(āre) to disturb (derivative of turba turmoil) + -idus -id⁴

Related formstur·bid·i·ty, tur·bid·ness, nountur·bid·ly, adverbun·tur·bid, adjectiveun·tur·bid·ly, adverb

Can be confusedtorpid turbid turgid

Synonyms for turbid

1. murky, cloudy, roiled, muddy.

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

Examples from the Web for turbidity

Historical Examples of turbidity

If the turbidity is owing to the urate it will disappear; if to chyle it will remain.
Cooley's Practical Receipts, Volume II
Arnold Cooley
Hydrochloric acid added to a clear solution, after some time, causes a turbidity and odour of sulphurous anhydride.
Cooley's Cyclopdia of Practical Receipts and Collateral Information in the Arts, Manufactures, Professions, and Trades..., Sixth Edition, Volume I
Arnold Cooley
Fatty acids are detected by the turbidity they produce when the diluted glycerine is acidified.
The Handbook of Soap Manufacture
W. H. Simmons
The turbidity of many feldspars is the result of partial “kaolinization,” or alteration to kaolin.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 15, Slice 6
Various
He (1948:27) stated that color in tadpoles from different localities probably varies with soil color and turbidity of water.
Neotropical Hylid Frogs, Genus Smilisca
William E. Duellman

British Dictionary definitions for turbidity

turbid

adjective

muddy or opaque, as a liquid clouded with a suspension of particles

dense, thick, or cloudyturbid fog

in turmoil or confusion

Derived Formsturbidity or turbidness, nounturbidly, adverb

Word Origin for turbid

C17: from Latin turbidus, from turbāre to agitate, from turba crowd

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 turbidity

turbid

adj.

1620s, from Latin turbidus "muddy, full of confusion," from turbare "to confuse, bewilder," from turba "turmoil, crowd," probably from Greek tyrbe "turmoil."

turbidity in Medicine

turbid

[tûr′bĭd]

adj.

Having sediment or foreign particles stirred up or suspended; muddy; cloudy.

Related formstur•bid′i•ty n.