vapid

adjective

va·​pid ˈva-pəd How to pronounce vapid (audio) ˈvā- How to pronounce vapid (audio)
: lacking flavor, zest, interest, animation, or spirit : flat, dull
a gossipy, vapid woman, obsessed by her own eleganceR. F. Delderfield
London was not all vapid dissipationV. S. Pritchett
vapidly adverb
vapidness noun

Did you know?

“Then away goes the brisk and pleasant Spirits and leave a vapid or sour Drink.” So wrote John Mortimer—an early 18th-century expert on agriculture, orchards, and cider-making—in his book on husbandry. His use was typical for his day, when vapid was often used specifically in reference to liquor. The term comes from Latin vapidus, meaning “flat-tasting,” a possible relative of vapor. That use still occurs today; you might, for example, hear an uninspiring wine described as vapid. More likely, however, you’ll hear vapid, along with the synonyms insipid, flat, and inane, describe people and things that are dull and boring, empty and insubstantial, or lacking spirit and character.

Choose the Right Synonym for vapid

insipid, vapid, flat, jejune, banal, inane mean devoid of qualities that make for spirit and character.

insipid implies a lack of sufficient taste or savor to please or interest.

an insipid romance with platitudes on every page

vapid suggests a lack of liveliness, force, or spirit.

an exciting story given a vapid treatment

flat applies to things that have lost their sparkle or zest.

although well-regarded in its day, the novel now seems flat

jejune suggests a lack of rewarding or satisfying substance.

a jejune and gassy speech

banal stresses the complete absence of freshness, novelty, or immediacy.

a banal tale of unrequited love

inane implies a lack of any significant or convincing quality.

an inane interpretation of the play

Examples of vapid in a Sentence

Waiting rooms, as I'm sure you know, are small rooms with plenty of chairs for waiting, as well as piles of old, dull magazines to read and some vapid paintings … while you endure the boredom that doctors and dentists inflict on their patients before bringing them in to poke them and prod them and do all the miserable things that such people are paid to do. Lemony Snicket, The Ersatz Elevator, 2001
In a secular age, symbolic rituals such as lighting the Olympic torch inevitably risk seeming a little vapid. Tony Perrottet, Civilization, June/July 2000
… the incompetent servant, by whomsoever employed, is always against his employer. Even those born governors, noble and right honourable creatures, who have been the most imbecile in high places, have uniformly shown themselves the most opposed (sometimes in belying distrust, sometimes in vapid insolence) to THEIR employer. What is in such wise true of the public master and servant, is equally true of the private master and servant all the world over. Charles Dickens, Our Mutual Friend, 1865
a song with vapid lyrics
Recent Examples on the Web This cultural depreciation has led to praise for vapid movies such as Barbie, Dune, and Oppenheimer. Armond White, National Review, 15 Mar. 2024 There have been recent rumblings about the cast shake-up following a vapid season 15, which featured Burrus along with Marlo Hampton, Drew Sidora, Shereé Whitfield, Kenya Moore, and Sanya Richards-Ross. Shelby Stewart, Essence, 5 Feb. 2024 Unlike Greta Gerwig’s toy-feminism, a marketing coup that sold misandry and ineptitude alongside vapid white privilege — all the more biased in its supporting cast of diversity tokens. Armond White, National Review, 5 Jan. 2024 There’s a vapid goofiness alongside the real emotions conveyed in Mason’s lyrics, and a bubblegum pop sensibility in the music—one that’s ’roided out and slathered in fuzz. Pitchfork, 6 Dec. 2023 Their exterior world is an ill-suited and vapid replacement for the healthy and rich interior world both protagonists failed to cultivate in childhood. Hazlitt, 27 Sep. 2023 The Warhol contempt for his subjects is visible in his portraits—Marilyn Monroe made to look garishly vapid and tragically worn by life, Jacqueline Kennedy, silk-screened from the photograph of her blank and dumb-struck face at the swearing-in ceremony in Dallas after the assassination. Stephen Birmingham, Town & Country, 10 Aug. 2023 But, as the story progresses, the intensity of her fixation is contrasted with his profound indifference, and her vapid exterior is shown to mask desperate anxieties about class, gender, and power. Condé Nast, The New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2023 Kid is a candidate for the rite of passage, confronts vapid Jewish education, overemphasis on the celebration, clueless parents, etc.; skips town, goes to Israel on a Jewish spiritual quest, has adventures, encounters various teachers and role models, comes back with a new sense of Jewish identity. The Salt Lake Tribune, 7 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'vapid.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin vapidus "(of wine) having lost freshness, flat"; akin to Latin vappa "wine that has gone flat" and perhaps to vapor "exhalation, steam" — more at vapor entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1656, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of vapid was circa 1656

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Dictionary Entries Near vapid

Cite this Entry

“Vapid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vapid. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

vapid

adjective
vap·​id
ˈvap-əd
: being dull or uninteresting
vapidly adverb

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