1. (as two words) Fresh water (see SWEET a. 3 b); attrib. (usually with hyphen or as one word), living in or consisting of fresh water.
1608. Topsell, Serpents, 287. There was a magicall … vse of these Sweete-water-Tortoyces agaynst Hayle.
1861. Chambers’ Encycl., II. 668/2. [Catabrosa] is sometimes called Whorl Grass, and sometimes Sweet Water Grass.
1872. Raymond, Statist. Mines & Mining, 11. Sweet-water springs.
1895. P. Hemingway, Out of Egypt, II. 149. A party of women washing linen in some sweetwater canal.
† 2. (as two words, or with hyphen) A sweet-smelling liquid preparation; a liquid perfume or scent. Obs.
1544. Phaër, Regim. Lyfe (1560), M viij b. As concernynge sweete waters to sprinkle upon your clothes.
1588. Shaks., Tit. A., II. iv. 6. Call for sweet water, wash thy hands.
1688. R. Holme, Armoury, III. 398/1. A small Chafer (which they [sc. barbers] use to carry about with them …) to carry their sweet water … in.
1769. Lady Mary Coke, Jrnl., 27 Nov. All sorts of sweet waters & fine pomatums.
1859. Habits of Gd. Society, ii. (new ed.), 125. Banish … every essence, cosmetic, or sweet-water from your toilet.
b. Technically applied to sweet liquids obtained as by-products in certain manufactures.
1885. W. L. Carpenter, Soap, Candles, etc., xiii. 295 (Glycerin). The whole is then blown out into a tank, and the ‘sweet-water’ is run off.
1910. Encycl. Brit., V. 178/2 (Candles). On standing the product separates into two layers—‘sweet water’ containing glycerin below, and the fatty acids with a certain amount of lime soap above.
3. (with hyphen, or as one word) A variety of white grape, of specially sweet flavor.
1786. Abercrombie, Arrangem., in Gard. Assist., 15. Grapes…. White sweet-water. Black sweet-water.
1848. Lowell, Biglow P., Ser. I. Introd. He affirmed that … he had never seen a sweet-water on a trellis growing so fairly … as a fox-grape over a scrub-oak in a swamp.
1865. Sala, Diary in Amer., II. v. 159. He sends down the companion after the black Hambros, or the juicy sweetwaters, or the fragrant muscatels.
