Readers have contributed words that describe how people feel in all weathers, following a letter about the English language's rich weather vocabulary.
Regional Weather Words
Fiona McPherson, executive editor of the Oxford English Dictionary, noted: 'Unsurprisingly, the English language is redolent with words to do with harsh weather, with many of the longest-established terms tending towards the cold or inclement.' She added: 'Perhaps as hotter weather becomes the norm rather than the exception, we’ll start to talk less about dreich days that leave us shrammed or clumsed and more about blazers that are a bit of a pech and leave us feeling mooth.'
Simon Green from Hull wrote: 'I can assure Jan Cooper that people in Yorkshire are still capable of feeling nithered, in very cold weather. On the other hand, in the recent spells of very hot weather, they are far more likely to have felt mafted.'
Wendy Neve from Over Stratton, Somerset, recalled: 'I remember a lot of snow in my 1950s Wiltshire childhood, and when it pitched, we played outside until we were shrammed and our cheeks were spreathed.' She added that in summer, her great aunts sat outside until their bottoms were dunched.
Carol Haines from Yealmpton, Devon, explained: 'In Lancashire when we’re cold we say: “I’m starving”. To avoid confusion, when we’re starving, we say: “I’m clemming”.'
