seethe

1 of 2

verb

ˈsēṯẖ 

seethed; seething

intransitive verb

1

: to suffer violent internal excitement

seethe with jealousy

2

a

: to be in a state of rapid agitated movement

b

: to churn or foam as if boiling

3

archaic : boil

transitive verb

1

: to soak or saturate in a liquid

2

archaic : boil, stew

seethe

2 of 2

noun

: a state of seething : ebullition

Synonyms of seethe

Verb

• swirl
• churn
• boil
• roil
• spin

Examples of seethe in a Sentence

Verb

He seethed at his brother's success.

We found ourselves in the middle of a seething crowd.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Her Catherine is less defined by the quirky, appealing eccentricities of Mary-Louise Parker’s performance in the original 2000 Broadway staging, but is girded by a certain angry resignation, fearful of what life might have in store, furious too, yet seething with a will to defy it all. —Greg Evans, Deadline, 16 Apr. 2026

So Isaac and Mulligan have done seething resentment before in the most watchable way. —Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 15 Apr. 2026

The gentle lampooning of the HBO series Silicon Valley a decade ago has curdled into seething, burn-it-down contempt. —Scott Tobias, Vulture, 12 Apr. 2026

And because our planet back then was a seething ball of magma, the lunar nearside should have been baked like crème brûlée, with the nearside turning molten and bubbly. —Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 7 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English sethen, from Old English sēothan; akin to Old High German siodan to seethe and probably to Old Lithuanian siausti (it) storms, rages

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Noun

1816, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for seethe

• breathe

Kids Definition

seethe

verb

ˈsēt͟h

seethed; seething

1

: to churn or foam as if boiling

the river rapids seethed

2

: to be upset or in a state of great excitement

was seething with rage