Of course, you can spend your summer dropping the latest slang all the cool kids are using, but why not bring back some old favorites?
Here are some summer words and phrases from ye olden days that might warrant a comeback.
Besweat
You’ll have to reach way into the English lexicon for this one. It comes from the Old English and Middle English word bisweten, which means to be covered in sweat.
Sentence: I was working in the garden in the afternoon sun, and now I am besweat.
Forswat
Similar to besweat, it means being overheated and covered with sweat. So there’s an additional temperature component in the Old English and Middle English word.
Sentence: Instead of going inside when it reached 90 degrees, I stayed outside and was forswat.
Mucksweat
Another more British-sounding sweaty term. This one means profuse sweat or a state of profuse sweating. Its usage peaked in the 1930s and came briefly back into use in the 1960s.
Sentence: After spending all that time in the sun, I was in a mucksweat by the end of the day.
Firefang This one is useful in our region as it gets dry. It means to become overheated, excessively dry and damaged as a result of slow oxidative decomposition of organic matter. The term was used in the 1890s, then again in the 1910s, ’30s and lastly in the ’60s, most commonly within agriculture.
Sentence: The heat and lack of water firefanged the grass.
Dog days of summer
Despite people using this term for any day hot enough to make a pooch pant, it refers to a specific time frame. The actual dog days are from July 3 to Aug. 11 because Sirius, the dog star, which is part of the Canis Major constellation, rises and sets with the sun during that time. The ancient Romans believed it gave off heat and added to the hot day.
Besweat
You’ll have to reach way into the English lexicon for this one. It comes from the Old English and Middle English word bisweten, which means to be covered in sweat.
Sentence: I was working in the garden in the afternoon sun, and now I am besweat.
Forswat
Similar to besweat, it means being overheated and covered with sweat. So there’s an additional temperature component in the Old English and Middle English word.
Sentence: Instead of going inside when it reached 90 degrees, I stayed outside and was forswat.
Mucksweat
Another more British-sounding sweaty term. This one means profuse sweat or a state of profuse sweating. Its usage peaked in the 1930s and came briefly back into use in the 1960s.
Sentence: After spending all that time in the sun, I was in a mucksweat by the end of the day.
Firefang This one is useful in our region as it gets dry. It means to become overheated, excessively dry and damaged as a result of slow oxidative decomposition of organic matter. The term was used in the 1890s, then again in the 1910s, ’30s and lastly in the ’60s, most commonly within agriculture.
Sentence: The heat and lack of water firefanged the grass.
Dog days of summer
Despite people using this term for any day hot enough to make a pooch pant, it refers to a specific time frame. The actual dog days are from July 3 to Aug. 11 because Sirius, the dog star, which is part of the Canis Major constellation, rises and sets with the sun during that time. The ancient Romans believed it gave off heat and added to the hot day.
— Compiled by Inland 360 contributor Kaylee Brewster.
