*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of flid

Clipping of thalidomide, a pharmaceutical drug that was found to causes birth defects leading to a historical scandal, with the initial consonant modified by th-fronting.

1 source sectionExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
noun

One with birth defects (such as phocomelia) caused by thalidomide. · One who is physically uncoordinated or incompetent.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Clipping of thalidomide, a pharmaceutical drug that was found to causes birth defects leading to a historical scandal, with the initial consonant modified by th-fronting.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":clip",
        "3": "thalidomide",
        "text": "+",
        "dot": ","
      },
      "expansion": "[Appendix:Glossary#clipping|Clipping]] of\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"alt\" : \"(ph)thal(ic acid)\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"phthalic\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"alt\" : \"(im)ido\", \"children\" : [ ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"imido\", \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"alt\" : \"(i)mide\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"bor.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Borrowed from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"hide\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang_name\" : \"Egyptian\", \"term\" : \"jmn\", \"gloss\" : \"Amun\", \"lang\" : \"egy\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Ancient Greek\", \"term\" : \"Ᾰ̓́μμων\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"grc\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"bor\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"Ammōn\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"ammoniacus\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"ammonia\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"id\" : \"chemical suffix\", \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"children\" : [ { \"keyword_abbrev\" : \"der.\", \"keyword_label\" : \"Derived from\", \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"do\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Indo-European\", \"term\" : \"*dʰeh₁-\", \"lang\" : \"ine-pro\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Proto-Italic\", \"term\" : \"*-iðos\", \"status\" : \"inline\", \"lang\" : \"itc-pro\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"Latin\", \"term\" : \"-idus\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"la\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"derived\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-ide\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"amide\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"keyword\" : \"from\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"imide\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"thalidomide\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword\" : \"clipping\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"flid\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"flid\">\nClipping of thalidomide,"
    },
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        "2": ":clip",
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      },
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    ],
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    ]
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  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "noun",
      "glosses": [
        "One with birth defects (such as phocomelia) caused by thalidomide.",
        "One who is physically uncoordinated or incompetent."
      ],
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        "UK",
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}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for flid →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-ZmxpZA