zwodder means A dull, drowsy state; stupor. It carries an Arena rating of 1617, earned across 51 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, zwodder ranks #646 of 17,140 for Most Whimsical Words, #713 of 17,163 for Funniest Words, #1,468 of 17,151 for The Improbable, #1,707 of 17,126 for Most Satisfying to Say.
Why “zwodder” is a great word
ZWODDER — [Noun] A drowsy, muddled, or stupid state of mind or body; a stupor. From Middle English swodderen, from Old English swodrian ("to get drowsy, fall asleep"), of uncertain origin; perhaps a variant of Old English swaþrian ("to withdraw, retreat, subside"). Compare Middle Dutch swadderen ("to be weary from drinking, stagger"). Unlike "torpor," which implies a sluggish inactivity often imposed by cold or illness, or "reverie," which suggests a pleasant, abstracted musing, zwodder is a thick and foolish haze. It is the befuddled stare of one roused too soon from a heavy nap, the clumsy stagger from a warm tavern into a cold night, or the vacant, uncomprehending stare of a mind adrift on its own inertia—a gentle abdication of sense, where thought retreats and leaves only the body's dumb weight.
Etymology
From Middle English swodderen, from Old English swodrian (“to get drowsy, fall asleep”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps a variant of Old English swaþrian (“to withdraw, retreat, subside”). Compare also Middle Dutch swadderen (“to be weary from drinking, stagger”).
noun
- A dull, drowsy state; stupore.g.“So most volk came round to think that 'twur a kind o' zwodder that had suddenly come over en — zummet in the line of a fainting-fit, lookyzee.” — 1923, John Read, Cluster-o'-vive: stories and studies of old-world Wessex, page 148:
Definitions & examples from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 3.0).
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