blistering
Americanadjective
-
(of weather) extremely hot
-
(of criticism) extremely harsh
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of blistering
Explanation
Use the adjective blistering to mean extremely hot. You might love living in Georgia, except for the blistering heat in the summer time. A baker has to remove her loaves of bread carefully from the oven because of the blistering heat. You can also use blistering to mean a different kind of heat: "Her blistering criticism took him by surprise." Or a racer might set out on a track at a blistering pace, one that's incredibly fast or impressive. The original, hot meaning of blistering comes from the idea that something is "hot enough to form blisters."
Vocabulary lists containing blistering
The Sweltering Words of Summer
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The Kite Runner
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This Week in Words: September 25 - October 1, 2017
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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.
As research firm GlobalData TS Lombard wrote in a note to clients last week, a slowing economy, combined with “the blistering rally in crack spreads,” means equities could stall in the near term.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 20, 2026
The blistering heat also has hindered efforts to fight massive wildfires raging in Colorado and Utah.
From Barron's ● Jul. 11, 2026
Now, on the heels of a blistering speech at the annual Davos gathering, his arguments were gaining ground.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
The jet will fly over the National Mall alongside the Defense Department’s most impressive equipment on Saturday, before the president delivers a speech in what is forecast to be a blistering heat wave.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 3, 2026
And Hudson is the only one staring at his desk, deep in thought, while everyone gets excited over the first rain of this blistering month.
From "What If It's Us" by Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera
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.
