lucid

****************************************************************
Looking for a new kind of post-holiday feeding frenzy?
Feast on a free trial to Merriam-Webster Unabridged!
http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/unabridged_sub.pl?refr=U_wod
****************************************************************

The Word of the Day for January 25 is: 

lucid   \LOO-sid\   adjective
     1 a : suffused with light : luminous  b : translucent 
    *2 : having full use of one's faculties : sane 
     3 : clear to the understanding : intelligible 

Example sentence:
     Susan seemed quite lucid despite the head injury.

Did you know?
     It's easy enough to shed some light on the origins 
of "lucid" -- it derives (via the Latin adjective "lucidus," 
meaning "shining") from the Latin verb "lucere," meaning "to 
shine." "Lucid" has been used by English speakers since at 
least the late 16th century. Although it once meant 
merely "filled with light" or "shining," it has developed 
extended senses describing someone whose mind is clear or 
something with a clear meaning. Other shining examples 
of "lucere" descendants include "translucent," "lucent" 
("glowing"), and the somewhat rarer "relucent" ("reflecting 
light" or "shining"). Even the word "light" itself derives from 
the same ancient word that led to "lucere."

*Indicates the sense illustrated in the example sentence.