Definition

1. Noun:

   • Salty fluid secreted by sweat glands: The clear, salty liquid that comes out through your skin when you are hot, nervous, or ill.
   • Condensation of moisture on a cold surface: Drops of water that form on a cold surface when warm, moist air touches it.
   • Hard work, strenuous effort: The use of a lot of physical or mental energy; difficult labor.
   • A state of anxiety or worry: A state of nervous agitation or worry.

2. Verb (intransitive):

   • To excrete perspiration: To have sweat come out through the pores of your skin.
   • To work hard: To work very hard at something.
   • To be anxious or worried: To be in a state of nervous anticipation.

3. Verb (transitive):

   • To cause to sweat: To make someone or something sweat.
   • To extract something through pressure: To force someone to give something up, such as information or money, through intense pressure.

Usage Examples

• Noun (fluid):

  • After the run, his shirt was soaked with sweat.
  • She wiped the sweat from her brow.

• Noun (condensation):

  • There was sweat on the cold glass of lemonade.

• Noun (hard work):

  • He earned his money by the sweat of his brow.
  • This job is a real sweat.

• Noun (worry):

  • He's in a sweat about his final exams.

• Verb (intransitive - excrete):

  • I always sweat when I exercise.
  • The intense heat made everyone sweat.

• Verb (intransitive - work hard):

  • We sweated for hours to finish the project on time.

• Verb (transitive - cause to sweat):

  • The sauna really sweats the toxins out of you.
  • The coach sweated the players during practice.

Advanced Usage

• "To sweat the small stuff": To worry about minor, unimportant details.

  • Try not to sweat the small stuff; focus on the big picture.

• "To sweat blood": To work extremely hard or to be very anxious about something.

  • I sweated blood to get that report finished.

• "No sweat" (informal): Used to say that something is not a problem or is easy to do.

  • "Can you fix this?" "Sure, no sweat."

Variants and Related Words

• Sweaty (adj): Covered in or producing sweat.

  • It was a hot, sweaty day.

• Sweats (n, plural): Informal term for sweatpants or a sweatsuit.

  • I changed into my sweats after work.

• Sweat gland (n): The small organ under your skin that produces sweat.

Synonyms

• Perspiration (n): The more formal term for sweat (fluid).
• Exertion (n): Physical or mental effort.
• Labor (n): Hard work.
• Perspire (v): To sweat (more formal).

Related Phrasal Verbs

• Sweat out:

  • To endure something unpleasant until it ends.

    • We just had to sweat out the storm in the cabin.
  • To try to get rid of an illness by sweating.

    • He's trying to sweat out his cold.

• Sweat over: To spend a lot of time and effort worrying about or working on something.

  • Don't sweat over the details right now.

Related Idioms

• By the sweat of one's brow: By one's own hard work and effort.

  • He built the business by the sweat of his brow.

• Break out in a cold sweat: To suddenly become very frightened or nervous.

  • I break out in a cold sweat just thinking about public speaking.

• Don't sweat it (informal): Don't worry about it.

  • "I'm sorry I'm late." "Don't sweat it, we just started."

Noun

1. use of physical or mental energy; hard work
   • he got an A for effort
   • they managed only with great exertion
2. condensation of moisture on a cold surface
   • the cold glasses were streaked with sweat
3. agitation resulting from active worry
   • don't get in a stew
   • he's in a sweat about exams
4. salty fluid secreted by sweat glands
   • sweat poured off his brow

Verb

1. excrete perspiration through the pores in the skin
   • Exercise makes one sweat