Photo courtesy of Pixabay, CCO

It’s so hot, I saw a dog chasing a cat and they were both walking!

There are so many wonderful things about summer that we often ignore the one inescapable downside to this season – It’s hot! Or, at least we ignore it until we no longer can. Then, when the sweltering sun and oppressive humidity get to be too much, and a simple walk outside can make us pour with perspiration, we have many jokes and expressions to let everyone know how we feel. Let’s get to know some of the best ways in English to let someone know how you feel about summer’s heat.

Idioms and Expressions

• It’s hotter than blue blazes! This is a smart expression because it refers to the fact that the blue part of a flame is its hottest point. Hence, it’s very hot out!
• Hot enough for you? This annoying greeting can be heard on almost every hot day in the U.S. Let me advise you never to say it to anyone in case you want to hear the answer.
• It’s a scorcher! (Also, it’s a torcher!) Much of the U.S. uses the word scorcher, but you may hear the word torcher in the mid-west.
• It’s a barn-burner out there! This phrase implies that if you light a match, everything will catch on fire.
• Hotter than a firecracker! Sometimes accompanied with the words …on the Fourth of July.
• Hotter than Dutch love. This obscure expression may actually refer to a Dutch oven, which is a heavy, slow cooker. Or, it might be related to the belief that Calvinistic followers were deeply passionate behind closed doors. In any case, this expression can be heard in parts of New York, Pennsylvania, and the mid-Atlantic region.
• Hot enough to fry an egg. I’m not sure if you really can fry an egg on a sidewalk or the hood of a car in extreme heat, but I wouldn’t be surprised.
• She sure is a-beaming! This is an expression for very hot and sunny conditions. It’s a nice way to say it’s really hot today.
• The bear will get you today! The bear, in this case, is heat stroke. Also: The bear’s got him!
• Hotter than a stolen tamale! I think this phrase is unique to the southwest part of the U.S., but it should be used by everyone.
• Hotter than Hades! Also: Hotter than hell! These two expressions mean the same thing and are self-explanatory.

Jokes About the Heat

Someday I will write a blog about Johnny Carson. He was a comedian and the host of a late-night talk show for several decades. One of his most famous comedy routines was to announce that it was hot out today, and the audience would respond with, “How hot was it?”

• It was so hot that cows are giving evaporated milk.
• It was so hot that I saw a robin dipping his worm in iced tea.
• It was so hot that I saw a pigeon walking in the shadow of a fat man.
• It’s so hot that I saw two trees fighting over a dog.
• It’s so hot that the Statue of Liberty was asked to please lower her right arm.
• It’s so hot that fire ants are really on fire.
• It’s so hot that the cornfield popped.

Do you have any favorite hot weather Expressions or jokes that you’d like to share? I’d love to hear them!