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Synonyms

sweaty

American  
[swet-ee] / ˈswɛt i /

adjective

sweatier, sweatiest

  1. covered, moist, or stained with sweat.

  2. causing sweat.

  3. laborious.

sweaty British  
/ ˈswɛtɪ /

adjective

  1. covered with sweat; sweating

  2. smelling of or like sweat

  3. causing sweat

"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

Other Word Forms

  • sweatily adverb
  • sweatiness noun

Etymology

Origin of sweaty

First recorded in 1325–75, sweaty is from the Middle English word swety. See sweat, -y 1

Vocabulary lists containing sweaty

Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -y

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Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

“I had what I thought was a hot flash. I got super sweaty and didn’t feel like myself,” she told People in an interview published Tuesday.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 14, 2026

"The sun is too hot," Akanni told AFP, wedged between two equally sweaty passengers.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

That may have been outré to a middle and high-schooler trying to be cool, but at some point post-college, the Chili Peppers became synonymous with sweaty fools passing out in strip mall parking lots.

From Salon • Apr. 4, 2026

Instructors suspected he had failed to change out of his sweaty socks.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

Clara snarled, staring up into Boaz’s sweaty, familiar face.

From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.