turbid

adjective

tur·​bid ˈtər-bəd 

1

a

: thick or opaque with or as if with roiled sediment

a turbid stream

b

: heavy with smoke or mist

2

a

: deficient in clarity or purity : foul, muddy

turbid depths of degradation and misery

—C. I. Glicksberg

b

: characterized by or producing obscurity (as of mind or emotions)

an emotionally turbid response

turbidity

ˌtər-ˈbi-də-tē 

noun

turbidly

ˈtər-bəd-lē 

adverb

turbidness noun

Did you know?

Turbid and turgid (which means "swollen or distended" or "overblown, pompous, or bombastic") are frequently mistaken for one another, and it's no wonder. Not only do the two words differ by only a letter, they are often used in contexts where either word could fit. For example, a flooded stream can be simultaneously cloudy and swollen, and badly written prose might be both unclear (another sense of turbid) and grandiloquent. Nevertheless, the distinction between these two words, however fine, is an important one for conveying exact shades of meaning, so it's a good idea to keep them straight. Turbid, like its relative turbulent, comes ultimately from the Latin noun turba, meaning "confusion" or "crowd," while turgid comes from the Latin verb turgēre, "to be swollen."

Synonyms

• cloudy
• muddy
• riley
• roiled

Examples of turbid in a Sentence

the pond water became turbid from our swimming and splashing

Recent Examples on the Web

On the engineering side, the plan is to design a better speaker, targeting the ideal frequency response for a turbid ecosystem, and doing so in a way that drives down the cost. —IEEE Spectrum, 20 Nov. 2024

Grass carp make the water more turbid; stiltgrass and common reed can block sight lines and reduce property values; and sea lamprey are a shocking sight when they are attached to sport fish. —Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 12 Sep. 2024

The die-offs may be attributable to algae blooms and cloudy, turbid water observed by scientists in the spring and summer of 2022, VIMS and the Chesapeake Bay Program said in news releases. —Christine Condon, Baltimore Sun, 31 July 2024

What a sober, heartbreaking affirmation of life, and play, and sensuality, there in Paris, beside the turbid Seine, with the trenches — brimming with mud, death and excrement, not far to the east. —Sebastian Smee, Washington Post, 11 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin turbidus confused, turbid, from turba confusion, crowd, probably from Greek tyrbē confusion

First Known Use

1626, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

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Kids Definition

turbid

adjective

tur·​bid ˈtər-bəd 

: clouded or discolored by sediment

a turbid stream

turbidity

ˌtər-ˈbid-ət-ē 

noun

Medical Definition

turbid

adjective

tur·​bid ˈtər-bəd 

: thick or opaque with matter in suspension : cloudy or muddy in appearance

turbid urine