BharatNotes Pellucid
adjectiveUsage in a UPSC answer
A truly accountable administration communicates in pellucid prose, for budget documents and welfare guidelines drafted in impenetrable legalese effectively disenfranchise the very citizens they are meant to serve.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Word Family
pellucidly (adv), pellucidity (n), pellucidness (n)
Root
Latin per- = through; lucidus = clear, shining; from lucere = to shine → pellucidus = transparent
Etymology
From Latin pellucidus (also perlucidus) "transparent", from per- "through" + lucidus "clear, shining", from lucere "to shine"; in English use from the early 17th century.
Memory Hook
Break it as PER + LUCID: light shines "through" (per-) to make something "lucid" — think of a pool so clear you can see right through it. The doubled "l" echoes "limpid", its closest cousin.
How This Word Works in UPSC Writing
Transparently clear, whether of a liquid, a style of writing or an explanation. Its administrative use is in praising clarity of communication, which GS4 treats as an ethical as well as a practical quality: an order that citizens cannot understand cannot be complied with, and obscurity in official language shifts the burden of interpretation onto those least able to bear it.
Don’t Confuse It With
Pellucid is transparently clear and easily understood. Lucid is clear and is the more common word. Opaque is its opposite in the sense of resisting understanding. Verbose uses more words than needed, which is one common cause of losing pellucidity.
Hindi Meaning
पारदर्शी (pārdarshī) or अत्यंत स्पष्ट (atyant spasht).
Common Questions
- What does pellucid mean?
- Transparently clear, whether of a liquid or, more often in writing, of a style or explanation that is easily understood.
- Why does clarity matter in official communication?
- Because an instruction that citizens cannot understand cannot be followed, and obscure language shifts the burden of interpretation onto those least equipped to manage it.
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