Fervid

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈfɝ.vɪd/

Definitions

1. Characterized by intense emotion, passion, or enthusiasm; ardently heated in feeling or expression
2. Displaying an intense and passionate nature, often with fervor
3. Exhibiting strong and overwhelming feelings with great intensity

Etymology: Fervid began as a plain physical word. Latin "ferveo" meant "to boil" or "to glow with heat," and its adjective "fervidus" described things that were literally hot, seething, or burning. English borrowed the adjective directly from Latin, so the word carried that heat with it before any figurative sense developed. Its modern meaning of ardent, intensely passionate feeling grew out of that original image of boiling. The Latin verb underneath is the same one behind "fervor" and "fervent," so fervid is a close relative of those words rather than a separate creation. Its ending, "-id," comes from the Latin adjective suffix "-idus," the same pattern found in many other English adjectives borrowed from Latin. The word's core, "ferv-," carries the sense of heat, and the rest of the word simply makes it an adjective.

Synonyms: passionate, zealous, intense, ardent, enthusiastic

Antonyms: apathetic, indifferent, dispassionate, cool, unenthusiastic