Arid

//ˈæɹ.ɪd// adj

adj ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Very dry.

    "The cake was arid."

  2. 2
    Describing a very dry climate. Typically defined as less than 25 cm or 10 inches of rainfall annually.

    "Deserts are known for being arid."

  3. 3
    Devoid of value. figuratively

    "The millionaire viewed his gift as arid."

Adjective
  1. 1
    lacking vitality or spirit; lifeless wordnet
  2. 2
    lacking sufficient water or rainfall wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
boringcolorlessdrydustyhumdrumuninteresting

Example

More examples

"Exporting water from an arid country to the rainy Europe is pure folly."

Etymology

From French aride or directly from Latin āridus (“dry, arid, parched”), compare its synonymous contracted form ardus. Originally from the verb āreo (“I am dry, I am parched”), akin to ārdeō (“I am on fire, I burn”).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.