SULTRY

sultry, stifling, sulfurous, sulphurous

(adjective) characterized by oppressive heat and humidity; “the summer was sultry and oppressive”; “the stifling atmosphere”; “the sulfurous atmosphere preceding a thunderstorm”

sensual, sultry

(adjective) sexually exciting or gratifying; “sensual excesses”; “a sultry look”; “a sultry dance”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Adjective

sultry (comparative sultrier, superlative sultriest)

(weather) Hot and humid. [from late 16th c.]

(weather) Very hot and dry; torrid.

(figuratively) Sexually enthralling.

Synonyms

• (hot and humid): close, muggy

Anagrams

• rustly

Source: Wiktionary


Sul"try, a. [Compar. Sultrier; superl. Sultriest.] Etym: [From Sweltry.]

1. Very hot, burning, and oppressive; as, Libya's sultry deserts. Such as, born beneath the burning sky And sultry sun, betwixt the tropics lie. Dryden.

2. Very hot and moist, or hot, close, stagnant, and oppressive, as air. When in the sultry glebe I faint, Or on the thirsty mountain plant. Addison.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

1 June 2025

BACKFIRE

(verb) come back to the originator of an action with an undesired effect; “Your comments may backfire and cause you a lot of trouble”; “the political movie backlashed on the Democrats”


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Coffee Trivia

The expression “coffee break” was first attested in 1952 in glossy magazine advertisements by the Pan-American Coffee Bureau.

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