sweltering
SWEL-tur-ing
/ˈsweltərɪŋ/
Oppressively hot and humid.
Implies a heavy, suffocating heat that causes sweating and physical exhaustion, rather than just a high temperature.
The story behind the word. Sweltering has a surprisingly dark history. It comes from the Old English word 'sweltan', which meant 'to die' or 'to perish'. Over time, it softened to mean fainting from extreme heat, and eventually came to describe the oppressive, sweaty weather that makes you feel like you might melt.
Word relationships
- stifling: Stifling emphasizes the feeling of suffocating or not being able to breathe, while sweltering emphasizes the sweating and heat.
- scorching: Scorching implies dry, burning heat (like the sun beating down), while sweltering implies heavy, humid, sweaty heat.
- frigid: Frigid means intensely cold, the absolute opposite of sweltering.
- refreshing: Refreshing implies a pleasant, cooling temperature that relieves heat.
Commonly confused with
- sultry: Sultry also means hot and humid, but it often carries a romantic, mysterious, or sensual connotation, whereas sweltering is purely uncomfortable.
Word family
- swelter (verb): To suffer from oppressive heat.
Collocations
- sweltering heat
- sweltering summer
- sweltering afternoon
- sweltering conditions
Example sentences
- "We spent the sweltering August afternoon trapped in an apartment with no air conditioning, drinking ice water to stay cool." A vivid description of a summer day.
- "I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice." A historical speech reference. (Martin Luther King Jr., 'I Have a Dream' Speech, 1963)
Memory hook
Think of 'sweat' + 'melting'. When it is sweltering, you are sweating so much you feel like you are melting. Sweating + Melting = Sweltering.
When not to use
Do not use to describe dry, pleasant heat (like a nice day at the beach) or a crisp, hot desert afternoon; sweltering almost always implies humidity and discomfort.
Fun facts
- The term 'sweltry' was used in the 17th century before 'sweltering' became the dominant adjective to describe humid, oppressive days.
Related words
Explore more words
humidity, strenuous, oppressive, tropical, lethargic, overbearing
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