Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “torrid” come from?

Torrid comes from Latin torridus, formed from the Latin verb torque—meaning to twist or burn—with the suffix -idus, ultimately deriving from Proto-Indo-European ter-, meaning to rub or turn.

torrid (English): Very hot and dry; Full of intense emotions...

Definitions

  1. Very hot and dry; Full of intense emotions...

Ancestry of “torrid”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latintorridusdry, parched; baked, roasted; torrid
2Latintorreō—
3Proto-Italictorzeōburn, scorch
4Proto-Indo-Europeantorséyetito make dry, to cause to dry
5Proto-Indo-European-éyetiForms causative imperfective verbs from roots;...
6Proto-Indo-European-yetiCreates transitive imperfective verbs from roots

Words derived from “torrid”

  • torridly
  • torridity
  • torridness
  • subtorrid
Every word from Proto-Indo-European -yeti →