From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!eagle!cw
Newsgroups: net.nlang
Title: Does "livid" mean anything other than white?
Article-I.D.: eagle.762
Posted: Sun Feb  6 19:02:31 1983
Received: Mon Feb  7 05:52:15 1983
References: pyuxqq.121


A recent article suggests that "livid" means something other than white
or pale.  Let me submit that in its most common usage,

	George was livid with rage.

it means only that George's face was, to quote my dictionary,
"ashy pale".  It is a common misconception to believe that in
this usage, "livid" means that George's face was suffused with
blood or reddish.

It is true that the original root suggests a bluish color or
the color of lead; hence, "livid" could be used to describe
a bruise or contusion that had turned blue or blue/black.
However, I have never heard it used this way.  The suggestion
of a leaden hue is consistent with the pallor one sometimes
sees in an enraged person.

Charles