Warmest

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ˈwɔɹm.ɪst/

Definitions

1. Having the highest degree of heat or temperature ; expressing the most strong or sincere kindness and affection
2. Being at the top level of heat or warmth ; conveying the deepest feelings of friendliness and care
3. Characterized by the greatest amount of warmth in temperature ; indicating the most heartfelt and friendly emotions

Etymology: Warmest is the superlative of "warm," and the root sense is about burning. The Proto-Indo-European root "wer- meant "to burn," and its descendants include the Armenian "vaṙel" ("to burn, heat, warm") and the Old Church Slavonic "variti" ("to cook, boil"). Old English "wearm" carried the basic idea of heat, and the modern word has kept that core while its figurative senses grew from it. A second possible ancestor, Proto-Indo-European "gʷʰer- ("warm, hot"), would tie the word to Ancient Greek "thermós," the source of "thermo-" words like thermos. This link is possible rather than certain, and the sources do not settle it. The emotional sense of warm, meaning friendly and caring, is a figurative extension of physical heat, the same metaphor found in calling a person "cold" when they are distant. Warmest carries that figurative sense into the superlative.

Synonyms: hottest, fieriest, toastiest

Antonyms: coldest, chilliest