Scalding
/ˈskɔːldɪŋ/noun
Extremely hot enough to burn the skin; also, harshly critical or insulting.
Did you know?The verb ultimately belongs to a Germanic root for “burn” or “scorch,” and English preserved that raw physical danger in both the literal heat sense and the figurative “scalding” insult.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*skaldjaną
“to burn, scald, or make hot”
Old English
OE
scaldian
“to burn with hot liquid; to injure by heat”
Middle English
ME
scolden / scalden
“to burn or blister with hot liquid”
Modern English
English
scalding
“burning or capable of burning with hot liquid; intensely severe”