How to Use lurid in a Sentence

lurid

adjective
  • The light from the fire cast a lurid glow on everything.
  • After all, for weeks now, each day has brought fresh, lurid tales.
    — Rebecca Traister, The Cut, 10 Dec. 2017
  • As a result, the past weeks have become awash with lurid green, and fast.
    — Leah Dolan, CNN, 23 July 2024
  • Ivor checked the verges to the limit of the headlights, his mind gone lurid and blank.
    — Anne Enright, New Yorker, 27 July 2025
  • The street was lurid with the flashing lights of several fire trucks.
    — Teju Cole, The New Yorker, 10 Jan. 2025
  • Peddling all sorts of lurid and ridiculous details to the world.
    — Fox News, 12 Apr. 2018
  • But one suspect’s lurid plans for his child victim stood out, police said.
    — Jared Gilmour, miamiherald, 1 Mar. 2018
  • Some have worked, others are just lurid and exploitative.
    — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2025
  • But with a crime this lurid, there’s surely room enough for two different tellings.
    — Keith Phipps, Rolling Stone, 4 Apr. 2023
  • Its shell is cracking, and a lurid yellow light gleams from within; a green gas seeps out.
    — J.b., The Economist, 5 Sep. 2019
  • Many and lurid are the child-snatching, child-snacking beasts that await those who resist sleep.
    — National Geographic, 25 Nov. 2020
  • His mild manner seems at odds with the lurid violence of crime novels.
    — New York Times, 4 June 2018
  • Although its lurid claims were quickly challenged, the book was a best seller.
    — New York Times, 31 Mar. 2021
  • Even Seema, so progressive, would find a way to spin it into some lurid tale.
    — Jade Sharma, New York Times, 12 May 2017
  • Peace seems far from Kingstown, a burg that is forever portrayed in a lurid light.
    — Daniel D'addario, Variety, 10 Nov. 2021
  • The President’s fantasies can, at times, take on a lurid tone.
    — Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 18 July 2026
  • But the lurid themes of his Odd Future days feel like fragments of a past life.
    — Pitchfork, 1 Oct. 2024
  • The book’s crimson cover and lurid drawings resurface time and time again.
    — Ali Winston, WIRED, 6 Dec. 2024
  • Much of our time on Audi's short handling course was spent sideways in a lurid drift.
    — David Beard, Car and Driver, 22 Feb. 2020
  • Atlanta’s makeover succeeded in the lurid way that urban makeovers do.
    — Michael Friedrich, The New Republic, 9 Feb. 2023
  • Even Farrell joined in on the process, finding a lurid piece of artwork to hang on the wall.
    — Josh Weiss, Forbes, 19 Sep. 2024
  • Celebrity drama is supposed to be lurid and glamorous.
    — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 7 Jan. 2026
  • Pink can work - take a look at some of Palermo's home shirts - but pink that is this lurid is a no-go.
    — SI.com, 3 July 2019
  • The Night Of unravels the yarn with lurid details and lots of plot twists.
    — Stephanie Bai, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2026
  • But, by true dawn, the worst of the wounds had vanished, erased by some bad magic, leaving only a lurid rash.
    — Karen Russell, The New Yorker, 4 June 2017
  • Even by the lurid standards of true crime, the saga of the Murdaugh family stands out.
    — Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 28 Feb. 2023
  • Casting Rob Lowe against type is a clever choice for this lurid cautionary tale.
    — Sezin Devi Koehler, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Tires are slick, and the fastest way through a corner doesn't involve a lurid and spectacular drift.
    — Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2018
  • There were four Elvises—two in fading black and white, two in lurid colour—all aiming a six-gun straight at her.
    — Hazlitt, 30 Aug. 2023
  • The series sets out to be about Perry’s life rather than a lurid true-crime exploration of his death.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2026

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

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