sultry

Meanings

1. 1adjectivecomparable

   Hot, damp and heavy, so that the air feels uncomfortable and sticky.

   Grammar: Describes weather, air or a climate: a sultry afternoon.

   Patterns

   • a sultry day
   • sultry weather

   The sultry summer afternoon made everyone sleepy.

   We waited for the storm in the sultry air.

   The city was sultry for most of August.

2. 2adjectivecomparableapproving

   Attractive in a slow, confident way that suggests passion or desire.

   Grammar: Usually describes a woman's voice, look or smile, or a style of music.

   Patterns

   • a sultry voice
   • a sultry look

   The singer had a low, sultry voice.

   She gave him a sultry smile across the room.

   The saxophone added a sultry tone to the song.

Word forms

Common combinations

sultry weather

Sultry weather is common before a thunderstorm.

a sultry voice

The radio host had a sultry voice.

sultry heat

The sultry heat made it hard to sleep.

a sultry night

On a sultry night, the windows stayed open.

a sultry look

He was stopped by her sultry look.

Synonyms and how they differ

muggy

Muggy is more casual and applies only to weather, while sultry can also describe a person's style.

humid

Humid is a neutral, technical word for moist air, while sultry adds an uncomfortable, heavy feeling.

steamy

Steamy suggests hot and damp or romantic, and it is more informal than sultry.

sensual

Sensual focuses on physical pleasure and has no link to weather, unlike sultry.

Opposites

Word family

sultriness noun

the quality of being hot and damp or seductive

sultrily adverb

in a way that suggests heat or passion

swelter verb

related in meaning; to feel uncomfortably hot

Commonly confused: sultry or sulky?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “sultry”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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