sauna

sauna — noun

1. A sauna is a space lined with wood that people make extremely hot. Inside, a per

1.nounB1
Definition

A sauna is a space lined with wood that people make extremely hot. Inside, a person can sit or stretch out to rest and sweat. In some saunas, steam rises when water is splashed onto hot rocks. The same word can also describe the experience of being in this room for some time.

Example

After a long hike in the mountains, Ilan relaxed in the sauna at the lodge.

collocation: relax in the sauna

Yuna poured water over the hot stones, and steam filled the small wooden room.

Common collocations
  • have a sauna
  • go to the sauna
  • sweat in the sauna
  • cold plunge after the sauna
  • sauna session
Synonyms
  • steam room

    a room filled with moist heat and steam, usually tiled rather than wooden, and less hot than a sauna

  • steam bath

    a bath in steam; can refer to the treatment or the room, though more general and less specific than 'sauna'

  • sweat lodge

    a dome-shaped hut used by Indigenous peoples of the Americas for ceremonial sweating, with different cultural origins from the Finnish sauna

Grammar Patterns

have + a sauna

go to + the/a sauna

spend time in + a/the sauna

Usage Note

The word 'sauna' is a countable noun, so it normally needs an article (a sauna, the sauna) or a determiner. It can refer to both the room itself ('The sauna is very hot') and the activity or time spent in it ('I had a long sauna after swimming').

Common Mistakes

I went to sauna after work.
I went to the sauna after work.
'sauna' is a countable noun, so it needs an article or determiner.
We stayed in sauna for an hour.
We stayed in the sauna for an hour.
the definite article 'the' is required when referring to a specific sauna.

Word family

  • sauna-goer
    nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

All three words describe heated spaces used for relaxation or cleansing, but they differ in origin, temperature, and humidity. A sauna (from Finnish) is a dry-heat wooden room at 70–100°C where water on hot stones creates brief bursts of steam. A steam room is a tiled, humid enclosure at lower temperatures (40–50°C) with constant steam. A sweat lodge is a ceremonial structure used by some Indigenous cultures in the Americas, involving heated stones, prayers, and rituals — not simply a spa amenity. For everyday use, 'sauna' is the most common English word; 'steam room' is typical in gyms and spas; 'sweat lodge' should only be used with cultural respect and accuracy.

sauna ↗steam roomsweat lodge

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • have a sauna
  • go to the sauna
  • spend time in the sauna
  • sit in the sauna
  • pour water on the stones

Prepositions

  • in a sauna
  • to the sauna
  • out of the sauna
  • after the sauna

Etymology

Proto-FinnicFinnishEnglish

The word 'sauna' comes directly from Finnish, where it originally referred to a bathhouse or a room for bathing. Finnish is the only major language that uses this exact form, and English borrowed it as a cultural loanword in the late 1800s as saunas became known outside Finland. The Finnish word itself may go back to Proto-Finnic *sakna, meaning a room or shelter.