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Emma

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in "swelt body" - what is it?
swelt = swell or svelte?... :?

Thanks in advance :roll:
 
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Casiopea

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Emma said:
in "swelt body" - what is it?
swelt = swell or svelte?... :?

Thanks in advance :roll:
Click to expand...

svelte , pronounced [svElt], E as in "bed", means, slender, lean, lack of fat.

EX: A marathon runner has a svelte body.
 
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Emma

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But in this sentence "I was looking more svelte and less swelte
than I am today" swelte (= swelt ?) seems to have a different meaning from svelte...
 
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Susie Smith

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Emma said:
But in this sentence "I was looking more svelte and less swelte
than I am today" swelte (= swelt ?) seems to have a different meaning from svelte...
Click to expand...

I think it could be a misspelling.
Maybe less sweaty? :wink:

Or less swelled? :wink: I'd say swollen, but I know that swell has two past participles.
 
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Casiopea

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Emma said:
But in this sentence "I was looking more svelte and less swelte
than I am today" swelte (= swelt ?) seems to have a different meaning from svelte...
Click to expand...

Quite an odd sentence, isn't it? The grammar is off, not to mention the spelling.

Hmm.

I believe the writer/speaker was trying to express this,

I was more svelte in the past--that is, less svelte than I am today. I am still svelte today, but not as svelte as I was a long time ago.

All the best,
 
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Susie Smith

Guest
Casiopea said:
Emma said:
But in this sentence "I was looking more svelte and less swelte
than I am today" swelte (= swelt ?) seems to have a different meaning from svelte...
Click to expand...

Quite an odd sentence, isn't it? The grammar is off, not to mention the spelling.

Hmm.

I believe the writer/speaker was trying to express this,

I was more svelte in the past--that is, less svelte than I am today. I am still svelte today, but not as svelte as I was a long time ago.


All the best,
Click to expand...

It could be. It's hard to guess what's going on in other people's minds. The past continuous couldn'be used here, of course. BTW, would you say
"I am missing my mother." instead of "I miss my mother."? I have heard and read similar constructions quite often, but I wouldn't say it myself.
 
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Emma

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> It's hard to guess what's going on in other people's minds.
:mrgreen:
very hard indeed! :lol:
 
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curmudgeon

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It may be a play on words. A bit of a joke. More svelte less swelt (meaning swollen or fat)
 
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