WORD OF THE DAY: FERVID
adjective | FER-vid
Fervid is used to describe people or things that express or are expressive of strong feelings.
// The core of the book is the fervid letters the friends exchanged during the years they were apart.
EXAMPLE OF FERVID
“Fervid superfans of high-profile groups often pore over members’ appearances, performances, and private lives. Perceived ‘bad’ behaviour such as smoking or drinking can earn widespread public backlash, forcing stars to live under strict rules.” — Jessie Yeung, CNN, 16 Jan. 2026
DID YOU KNOW?
The metaphor of strong emotions bubbling over simmers in the roots of fervid, which comes from the Latin verb fervēre, meaning “to boil.” In English, this root gave us not only fervid but the similar-sounding and sometimes synonymous word fervent. But while fervid usually suggests warm emotion that is expressed in a spontaneous or feverish manner (as in “fervid basketball fans”), fervent is reserved for a kind of emotional warmth that is steady and sincere (as in “a fervent belief in human kindness”). Fervid fans of kimchi or sauerkraut (or fervent followers of anything fermented), may appreciate that fervēre is also the root of ferment.
Merriam Webster Dictionary
