Perspirational

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Relating to or characterized by the production or secretion of sweat, often associated with physical exertion or heat exposure; pertaining to the process of perspiring as part of bodily regulation; describing a quality that induces or involves sweating
2. Connected with the emission of moisture from the skin through sweat glands, typically resulting from exercise, stress, or heat; indicating the act or state of sweating; denoting properties that cause or signify perspiration
3. Associated with sweat formation on the skin due to body heat or activity; referring to the physiological phenomenon of sweating; depicting conditions or traits that promote or involve perspiration

Etymology: "Perspirational" is formed from "perspire" plus the adjective-forming suffix "-al". "Perspire" entered English in the early 1600s, borrowed from French "perspirer" or directly from Latin "perspirare", a compound of "per-" (through) and "spirare" (to breathe). The original sense was literal: to breathe through, as in the passage of vapour through the skin or pores. That physical picture is what the word carried for centuries. Medical writers used "perspiration" for insensible vapour escaping the body, while "sweat" was the plain English word for the visible fluid. "Perspiration" became the polite, genteel term in the 1700s and 1800s, and "perspirational" followed as a more formal adjective, appearing much less often than its root. Because it is a simple derivative, its history is essentially the history of "perspire".

Synonyms: sweaty, perspiring, clammy, moist

Antonyms: dry, nonperspiring