sweltering

sweltering — adjective

1. so hot that the air feels heavy and you begin to sweat just by standing still.

1.adjectiveB2
Definition

so hot that the air feels heavy and you begin to sweat just by standing still.

Example

The sweltering heat in the stadium made Selim feel dizzy after just ten minutes.

attributive: sweltering heat / sweltering day

Adaeze turned on every fan in the house during the sweltering afternoon.

collocation: sweltering afternoon

Common collocations
  • sweltering heat
  • sweltering summer
  • sweltering afternoon
  • sweltering weather
  • sweltering day
  • sweltering conditions
Synonyms
  • scorching

    slightly more dramatic, often suggests burning heat from the sun

  • roasting

    very informal, suggests being cooked by the heat

  • stifling

    focuses on the lack of fresh air rather than just temperature

  • blistering

    implies heat intense enough to cause damage (more extreme)

Antonyms
  • freezing

    used informally for extreme cold

  • chilly

    milder opposite, not extreme

Grammar Patterns

be + sweltering

sweltering + noun

Usage Note

Often used to describe weather, rooms, or outdoor spaces during summer heatwaves. Can be both attributive (sweltering heat) and predicative (the room is sweltering).

Common Mistakes

It is very sweltering today.
It is sweltering today.
'sweltering' already means extremely hot, so 'very sweltering' is redundant.

Word family

  • swelter
    verbB2
  • swelteringly
    adverbC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

Sweltering focuses on the body's discomfort — you feel weak, sticky, and unable to cool down. Scorching puts the spotlight on the sun itself (a scorching desert sun), while roasting is playful and informal, suggesting you feel like food in an oven. Stifling adds the element of poor air circulation (a stifling room with the windows shut), and blistering is the most extreme — heat fierce enough to peel paint or burn skin. For everyday conversation about a hot summer day, sweltering is the most natural choice. On a blistering afternoon you would stay indoors, but on a sweltering one you might still venture out briefly and regret it.

scorchingroastingstiflingblistering

Common collocations

Nouns

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

Comes from the verb swelter, which traces back to the Old English word sweltan meaning 'to die' or 'to perish.' Over time the meaning shifted from dying in general to dying specifically of heat, and by the 1500s sweltering was used for weather so hot it feels unbearable.