swelter

verb swel·ter \ ˈswel-tər \

Updated on: 28 Feb 2018

Definition of swelter

sweltered; sweltering play \ˈswel-t(ə-)riŋ\

intransitive verb

1 : to suffer, sweat, or be faint from heat

2 : to become exceedingly hot

in summer, the place swelters

transitive verb

1 : to oppress with heat

2 archaic : exude

sweltered venom
—William Shakespeare

See swelter defined for English-language learners

See swelter defined for kids

Examples of swelter in a Sentence

We were sweltering in the summer heat.

Recent Examples of swelter from the Web

Sydney, Australia swelters through its hottest day in almost 80 years.

— alyssa mcdonald, Bloomberg.com, "Five Things You Need to Know to Start Your Day," 7 Jan. 2018
But that still left thousands of people sweltering in the heat.

— brittany wallman, Sun-Sentinel.com, "FPL: 'We're going to do better' after hurricanes," 19 Dec. 2017
That song is why Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) keeps coming back to the Amazon rainforest in James Gray’s swooning, sweltering epic.

— david sims, The Atlantic, "The Egotism of Explorers in The Lost City of Z," 13 Dec. 2017
The refugees live in tents or containers that are sweltering in the desert summer and freezing in the winter.

— mahmoud al-najjar and gilgamesh nabeel, USA TODAY, "Homeless, helpless refugees use theater to push for a better life in squalid Iraqi camp," 16 Sep. 2017
To show just how dangerous a hot car can be for canines, Dr. Ernie Ward filmed himself while sitting in a sweltering parked car for 30 minutes.

— meghan overdeep, Southern Living, "Watch And See Just How Dangerous Your Hot Car Can Be For Your Dog," 2 Aug. 2017
There were pictures of red-faced pregnant women sweltering in their homes, a video of the tearful owner of a beloved dog electrocuted by a downed power line that neighbors said the electric company ignored.

— lauren ritchie, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Duke Energy amped up its own troubles by trying to control the news during Hurricane Irma," 22 Sep. 2017
Nursing home residents sweltered in hazardous conditions after Hurricane Irma, which felled a tree that knocked out the transformer powering the air conditioning system.

— michael nedelman, CNN, "Ninth death confirmed after Florida nursing home left without A/C," 20 Sep. 2017
On the same Wednesday morning that eight people died at a nursing home in Hollywood, patients at a Sunrise nursing home were also sweltering in a facility that lost power during Hurricane Irma.

— susannah bryan, Sun-Sentinel.com, "As patients died in Hollywood, Sunrise came to rescue of another nursing home," 19 Sep. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'swelter.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of swelter

Middle English sweltren, frequentative of swelten to die, be overcome by heat, from Old English sweltan to die; akin to Goth swiltan to die

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 14th century

See Words from the same year

swelter

noun

Definition of swelter

1 : a state of oppressive heat

2 : welter

3 : an excited or overwrought state of mind : sweat

in a swelter

Examples of swelter in a Sentence

the set designer spent the entire week before opening night in a swelter

Recent Examples of swelter from the Web

In the absence of El Nino, the swelter of 2017 was unprecedented.

— tom randall, Bloomberg.com, "Earth’s Relentless Warming Sets a Brutal New Record in 2017," 18 Jan. 2018
Only a handful of motor vehicles are allowed on the island; transportation is mainly the domain of donkeys or men pushing wooden carts through the tropical swelter.

— National Geographic, "As the World Cuts Back on Coal, a Growing Appetite in Africa," 10 May 2017
Yet there were upsides: namely, shells that slid off with nary a nick and entirely avoiding the swelter of stovetop boiling.

— sarah karnasiewicz, WSJ, "Can the Instant Pot Cook as Well as Julia Child?," 6 July 2017
In late May, mercury readings soared to 128.3 degrees in Pakistan, a swelter that coincided with Ramadan, when millions of Pakistanis forgo water and food from sunrise to sunset.

— rachel kyte, Time, "Air Conditioning Is a Lifesaver. It’s Also a Potential Disaster," 3 Aug. 2017
Those cities, and much of the Pacific Northwest, are in the third — and likely worst — day of a blistering heat wave that has slammed cities that usually escape the worst of the summer swelter.

— jen kirby, Daily Intelligencer, "Extreme Heat Wave Is Cooking the Pacific Northwest," 3 Aug. 2017
While the coastal communities get cooled by ocean breezes most days, many East County folks swelter in the summer heat.

— jamie gold, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Cooling trends for your home," 27 July 2017
No more running into the store for something and leaving your kid to swelter.

— dan sweeney, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Going to the polls in Miami-Dade," 25 July 2017
Today (Sunday): A return to the summer swelter is on the way.

— brian jackson, Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: Relatively nice today; heat and humidity build again this week," 16 July 2017

First Known Use of swelter

1851

swelter Synonyms

Synonyms

dither, fluster, fret, fuss, huff, lather, pother, stew, swivet, tizzy, twitter;

Related Words

bother, dudgeon, pique;

alarm (also alarum), hand-wringing, panic;

ado, agitation, delirium, distraction, furor, hysteria, uproar;

nervous breakdown;

SWELTER Defined for English Language Learners

swelter

verb

Definition of swelter for English Language Learners

: to be very hot and uncomfortable

SWELTER Defined for Kids

swelter

verb swel·ter \ ˈswel-tər \

Definition of swelter for Students

sweltered; sweltering

: to suffer, sweat, or be faint from heat

Learn More about swelter

See words that rhyme with swelter Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for swelter Spanish Central: Translation of swelter Nglish: Translation of swelter for Spanish speakers

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up swelter? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

swelter

Definition of swelter

Examples of swelter in a Sentence

Recent Examples of swelter from the Web

Origin and Etymology of swelter

swelter

Definition of swelter

Examples of swelter in a Sentence

Recent Examples of swelter from the Web

First Known Use of swelter

swelter Synonyms

Synonyms

Related Words

SWELTER Defined for English Language Learners

swelter

Definition of swelter for English Language Learners

SWELTER Defined for Kids

swelter

Definition of swelter for Students

Learn More about swelter

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

Going Greek: 7 Words from the Greek Alphabet

'Preventive' or 'Preventative'?

Odd Habits and Quirks Quiz

Trending: Trump: Den of Thieves and 'Lowlifes'

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes