Standard Lemma guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
noun
A long-term lack of rainfall or moisture.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: countable, uncountable
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
the quality of yielding nothing of value
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: fruitlessness, barrenness
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: quality
Narrower terms: poorness, unproductiveness
noun
a deficiency of moisture (especially when resulting from a permanent absence of rainfall)
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: aridness, thirstiness
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: dryness, waterlessness, xerotes
History
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h2eHs- Proto-Indo-European *-éh1ti Proto-Indo-European *-yeti Proto-Indo-European *-éh1yeti Proto-Indo-European *h2eHs-eh1yeti Proto-Italic *āzēō Latin āreō Proto-Indo-European *dheh1-der. Proto-Italic *-iðos Latin -idus Latin āridus Proto-Indo-European *-teh2 Proto-Indo-European *-ts Proto-Indo-European *-teh2ts Proto-Italic *-tāts Latin -tās Latin āriditāsbor. English aridity Borrowed from Latin āriditās (“dryness”); equivalent to arid + -ity.
Across languages
12 source translations are retained for this English entry.
