sultry

[ suhl-tree ]
See synonyms for: sultrysultriness on Thesaurus.com

adjective,sul·tri·er, sul·tri·est.
  1. oppressively hot and close or moist; sweltering: a sultry day.

  2. oppressively hot; emitting great heat: the sultry sun.

  1. characterized by or associated with sweltering heat: sultry work in the fields.

  2. characterized by or arousing passion: sultry eyes.

Origin of sultry

1
1585–95; sult(e)r (variant of swelter) + -y1

Other words for sultry

Other words from sultry

  • sul·tri·ly, adverb
  • sul·tri·ness, noun
  • un·sul·try, adjective

Words Nearby sultry

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use sultry in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sultry

sultry

/ (ˈsʌltrɪ) /


adjective-trier or -triest
  1. (of weather or climate) oppressively hot and humid

  2. characterized by or emitting oppressive heat

  1. displaying or suggesting passion; sensual: sultry eyes

Origin of sultry

1
C16: from obsolete sulter to swelter + -y 1

Derived forms of sultry

  • sultrily, adverb
  • sultriness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012