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welter

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welter¹

  • /ˈwɛltə/ UK
  • /ˈwɛltɚ/ US

Rhymes with -ɛltə(ɹ)

Where it comes from

From Middle English welteren, equivalent to welt + -er (frequentative suffix). Cognates include German Low German weltern (“to wallow; roll”), Old Norse velta (Danish vælte), German wälzen, Gothic 𐍅𐌰𐌻𐍄𐌾𐌰𐌽 (waltjan). Akin to wallow and Latin volvō.

noun welters

  1. A general confusion or muddle, especially of a large number of items. He would, except for his guests, have fled outdoors and walked off the intoxication of food, but in the haze which filled the room they sat forever, talking, talking, while he agonized, “Darn fool to be eating all this—not ’nother mouthful,” and discovered that he was again tasting the sickly welter

    Similar: bouillabaisse, bric-a-brac, catch-all, clamjamfrey, cocktail, rummage, salad, anthology, gallery, gatherum, congeries, crazyquilt

  2. A tossing or rolling about.

verb welters · weltering · weltered

  1. intransitive To roll around; to wallow. […] were it not for shame, Shame and dishonour to a soldier’s name, Upon my weapon’s point here shouldst thou fall, And welter in thy gore.
  2. figuratively, intransitive To revel, luxuriate. 1537, Hugh Latimer, Sermon III, Preached to the Convocation of the Clergy, in The Sermons of Hugh Latimer, London: J. Scott, 1783, Volume I, p. 38, When we welter in pleasures and idleness, then we eat and drink with drunkards.
  3. intransitive, of waves To rise and fall, to tumble over, to roll. Such Musick (as ’tis said) Before was never made, But when of old the sons of morning sung, While the Creator Great His constellations set, And the well-ballanc’t world on hinges hung, And cast the dark foundations deep, And bid the weltring waves their oozy channel keep.

welter²

  • /ˈwɛltə/ UK
  • /ˈwɛltɚ/ US

Rhymes with -ɛltə(ɹ)

adjective

  1. Heavyweight. (of horsemen) a welter race

welter³

  • /ˈwɛltə/ UK
  • /ˈwɛltɚ/ US

Rhymes with -ɛltə(ɹ)

Where it comes from

Compare wilt (intransitive verb).

verb welters · weltering · weltered

  1. To wither; to wilt. 1860, Isaac Taylor, Ultimate Civilization, and Other Essays, London: Bell & Dalday, “Ultimate Civilization,” Part I, IV, p. 40, But look now into the weltered hearts and blighted memories of those whom we have gathered from out of the thousands of the lost and wretched.

Welter⁴

proper noun Welters

  1. A surname.

Translations

Every language

noun general confusion or muddle

DeutschWoge, Flut, Fülle, Unzahl, Durcheinander, Wirrwarr

verb to roll around; to wallow

Deutschsich wälzen, sich herumwälzen, sich suhlen

verb to revel, luxuriate

Deutschschwelgen

verb to rise and fall, to tumble over, to roll

Deutschwogen

adj of horsemen, heavyweight

Françaiswelter

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MLA

"welter." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/welter. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

welter. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/welter

Chicago

"welter." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/welter.

BibTeX
@misc{welter_2026,
  title = {welter},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/welter},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}