swither

present singular third person swithers · participle present swithering · participle past swithered · past swithered · alternative swether · alternative swidder

1. dialectalTo burn, scorch, singe.
2. dialectalTo burn slowly, melt (as a candle), sweal
3. dialectalfigurativelyTo smart, ache; tingle

plural swithers · alternative swether · alternative swidder

1. countabledialectaluncountableA great heat; a scorching, singeing
2. countabledialectaluncountableSweating.

present singular third person swithers · participle present swithering · participle past swithered · past swithered

1. Northern EnglandScotlandTo be indecisive or in a state of confusion; to dither.
2. To move or swing about.

   He was filling his pipe, staring at his picture, not her, and this tacit dismissal allowed her to sidle over to the bank higher up, and there swither her legs about in the water before coming out of it.

   1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 51

plural swithers

1. Northern EnglandScotlandA state of indecision or confusion; a panicked state; a flap, fluster, or dither.

   Bradly came bristling to the lagoon the following afternoon, in a swither of alarm and expectation.

   1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 49