viridis (Latin)

Where does "viridis" come from?

The Latin adjective 'viridis' primarily means 'green in color' or 'verdant'[1]. It originates from the verb 'vireo', which signifies to flourish or to be verdant[1]. The deeper history of 'vireo' remains a subject of linguistic debate among scholars[2].

Open questions

• Some linguists propose that 'vireo' derives from a Proto-Indo-European root, but this connection is rejected by others on semantic grounds. [2]

Full etymology tree

• viridis (Latin), 'verdant'
  • derived vireo (Latin), 'to be verdant, green; to sprout new green growth'
  • affix -idis (Latin), 'dative/ablative masculine/feminine/neuter plural of -idus'

Descendants and derived words

• virid (English)
• virid (English)
• virid (English)

Sources

1. viridis (Latin) - Wiktionary
2. vireo (Latin) - Wiktionary

Updated August 2026

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Etymology data from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · About Miraris