gelidity means the state or quality of being gelid. Lexicurio rates it Rare gem — a strength score of 83 out of 100.
Why “gelidity” is a great word
GELIDITY — [Noun] The state or quality of being extremely cold; icy frigidity. From the English adjective gelid (meaning 'extremely cold; icy'), from Latin gelidus ('icy, frosty'), from gelum ('frost, cold'), combined with the noun-forming suffix -ity. Unlike 'chill' (which suggests a moderate, often unpleasant coldness) or 'frigidity' (which often denotes a lack of emotional warmth), gelidity is a profound, literal, and absolute physical cold. It is the diamond-hard glitter of starlight in a vacuum, the silent fracture of granite under permafrost, and the terrible clarity of a breath that freezes in the lungs—a purity of cold so extreme it feels less like an absence of heat and more like the presence of an elemental force.
Etymology
From gelid + -ity.
noun
- The state or quality of being gelid.