Sultry
adjective /ˈsʌltri/ — Expressing passion or desire through voice, look, or bearing.
Definition
Hot and oppressively humid (of weather); (of a person) attractive in a way that suggests a passionate, sensual nature — a quality of bearing, voice, or gaze that communicates desire.
Beyond the definition
Sultry is warmth on the verge of too much — the heated atmosphere before a storm, the voice that moves at a pace that feels charged. A sultry quality in a person is the impression of barely contained temperature — warmth that threatens to become heat.
Origin & history
From Middle English sulter (to swelter), from Old English sweltan (to die, perish from heat). Sultry weather is the weather of barely contained heat; sultry presence is the bearing of barely contained passion.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
The air had turned sultry — heavy with heat and the promise of thunder.
She had a sultry quality in repose that disappeared entirely when she started talking.
The singer's sultry delivery made the ballad feel like a direct communication.
How to use it
This entry uses an adjective. Follow the examples for the nouns it describes and its position in the sentence.
Choose “Sultry” when the meaning fits your context: Hot and oppressively humid (of weather); (of a person) attractive in a way that suggests a passionate, sensual nature — a quality of bearing, voice, or gaze that communicates desire.
Synonyms
sensual, smouldering, steamy, charged
Antonyms
cool, detached, indifferent
Related words
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Fictional scene
Atmospheric City Cafe
Inside a dim urban cafe, condensation beads on windowpanes while outside, a warm, hazy evening descends on the busy street.
The scene depicts the warm, enclosed environment of an urban cafe and the thick, humid atmosphere suggested by the condensation, visually representing the literal oppressive heat and the metaphorical sultry intensity of a passionate nature.
Image credit: Wordspun · AI-generated illustration
Questions about this word
What does "Sultry" mean?
Sultry is adjective meaning: Expressing passion or desire through voice, look, or bearing.. Hot and oppressively humid (of weather); (of a person) attractive in a way that suggests a passionate, sensual nature — a quality of bearing, voice, or gaze that communicates desire.
Where does the word "Sultry" come from?
From Middle English sulter (to swelter), from Old English sweltan (to die, perish from heat). Sultry weather is the weather of barely contained heat; sultry presence is the bearing of barely contained passion.