Words / C1

LOOS-id/ˈluːsɪd/

Lucid means clearly expressed, or mentally clear: a lucid explanation, a lucid interval (medicine). Clear is everyday; luminous (this batch) is “giving off light”. Lucidity is the noun. Do not call a long, foggy paragraph lucid because it uses long words.

Meaning

Clearly expressed and easy to understand; also mentally clear.

Examples

• “A lucid footnote named the n; the abstract did not.”
• “Clear is everyday. Transparent can be institutional. A lucid dream is a different, technical sense. Luminous is glowing. Length is not lucidity.”

Good to know

Clear (prose or mind). Everyday: clear. Noun: lucidity. Cousin: luminous (glowing). Long words ≠ lucid.

Near in meaning

clear

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