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What Do torrid and Toast Have in Common?
Torrid derives from the Latin verb torrēre, which means "to burn" or "to parch" and is an ancestor of our word toast. Despite the dry implications of this root, it is also an ancestor of torrent, which can refer to a violent stream of liquid (as in "a torrent of rain"). Torrid first appeared in English in the 16th century, and was originally used to describe something burned or scorched by exposure to the sun. The term torrid zone later came about to refer to tropical regions of the Earth. Torrid has taken on several extended meanings that we would use for hot, including "showing fiery passion," as in "torrid love letters," or "displaying unusual luck or fortune," as in "a baseball player on a torrid hitting streak."
Synonyms
Examples of torrid in a Sentence
Evan Webeck, The Mercury News, 30 Mar. 2024
Park, 27, continued his torrid hitting while going 2-for-2 with a double during Oakland’s 11-5 spring win over the Angels Saturday.
—Jon Becker, The Mercury News, 23 Mar. 2024
The social media group’s landlord may have cheered the nine-figure lump sum and looked nervously to the future as the U.K. capital endured a torrid corporate real estate market.
—Byryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 19 Mar. 2024
Mary Fulginiti: Who at the same time is carrying on a torrid love affair with the man who actually killed her husband.
—Michelle Miller, CBS News, 9 Mar. 2024
After a torrid time in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war and its resulting natural gas supply outages, things are about to change at multinational European energy company Uniper following the announcement of bumper profits.
—Gaurav Sharma, Forbes, 15 Feb. 2024
The lone pub in Twin Peaks where everyone gets together to gossip, side-eye each other, and carry on torrid affairs is technically called The Bang Bang Bar, but locals call it The Roadhouse.
—Katie Rife, EW.com, 16 Mar. 2024
By the death of Tybalt and the lovers’ tomb-side reunion, Shani had worked the suite into an appropriately torrid affair, the orchestra delivering thick gales of strings and blasts of brass of sometimes shocking force as the tragedy plodded toward disaster.
—Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2024
As the Florida Panthers continue their torrid run as of late, winning 14 of their past 16 games to put themselves atop the NHL standings entering Monday night’s game against the New York Rangers, recognition has been heaped on a slew of players for their individual accomplishments.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 4 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'torrid.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
borrowed from French & Latin; French torride, going back to Middle French, borrowed from Latin torridus "dried by exposure to heat, parched, scorched," adjective derivative from the stem of torreō, torrēre "to heat so as to dry, scorch, parch" — more at thirst entry 1
1545, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Phrases Containing torrid
Dictionary Entries Near torrid
Cite this Entry
“Torrid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/torrid. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
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Kids Definition
from Latin torridus "dried or burnt by heat, torrid," derived from torrēre "to heat so as to dry up or burn" — related to torrent
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