| 释义 |
▪ I. swallow, n.1|ˈswɒləʊ|
Forms: 1 s(u)ualu(u)ae, swealwe, swalowe, -uwe, -awe, 1, 4 swalewe, swalwe, swolwe, 4 swalugh, swalu, 4–6 swalow(e, 5 swalue, sualowe, 5–7 swallowe, 6– swallow.
[Com. Teut. (not recorded for Gothic): OE. swealwe wk. fem. = OS. suala, MLG. swalewe, swalue, MDu. swâluwe, -ewe (Du. zwaluw), OHG. swalawa, swalwa (MHG. swal(e)we, G. schwalbe), ON. svala for *svǫlva (MSw., Sw. svala, Da. svale):—OTeut. *swalwōn-, the etymological meaning of which is disputed.
Continental Germanic dialects have also forms of other types: without w in the final syllable, e.g. MHG. swal, swale, MLG. swale, WFris. sweal, swel; with m-suffix, e.g. HG. (local) schwalm, schwalme, Flem. swaelem; forms with dim. suffix are widespread in LG. and Fris., e.g. MLG. swalike, swal(e)ke, LG. swaalke, Flem. swalcke (Kilian), EFris., NFris. swâlk, WFris. swealtsje, sweltsje.]
1. a. A bird of the genus Hirundo, esp. H. rustica, a well-known migratory bird with long pointed wings and forked tail, having a swift curving flight and a twittering cry, building mud-nests on buildings, etc., and popularly regarded as a harbinger of summer (cf. c).
a700Epinal Gloss. 498 Hirundo, sualuuae. c950Guthlac x. (1909) 143 Þa comon þær sæmninga in twa swalewan fleoᵹan, and hi..heora sang upahofon. c1000Sax. Leechd. II. 156 Ᵹenim swealwan, ᵹebærn..to ahsan. Ibid. III. 44 Ᵹenim swolwan nest. c1320Sir Tristr. 1366 A swalu ich herd sing. c1374Chaucer Troylus ii. 64 The swalwe Proigne, with a sorwful lay,..gan make hir weymentinge. 1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xii. xxii. (Bodl. MS.) lf. 122 b/1 In making of nestes þe swalowe is moste sliȝe. a1450Knt. de la Tour lxxx. 102 The dunge of swalues fell into the eyen of this good man Tobie. a1529Skelton P. Sparowe 404 The chattrynge swallow. 1579Spenser Sheph. Cal. Mar. 11 The Swallow peepes out of her nest. 1611Shakes. Wint. T. iv. iv. 119 Daffadils, That come before the Swallow dares. 1750Gray Elegy 18 The swallow twitt'ring from the straw⁓built shed. 1820Keats To Autumn 33 The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft; And gathering swallows twitter in the skies. 1876–82Newton Yarrell's Hist. Brit. Birds II. 345 The migrations of the Swallow are in a direction nearly due north and south.
b. In allusions to the swift flight of the bird.
13..K. Alis. 3775 (Laud MS.), He takes Bulcyphal by þe side, So a swalewe he gynneþ forþ glide. c1380Sir Ferumb. 4232 Þat noble stede, þat al so swyftlyche þanne ȝede So swolwe doþ on flyȝt. c1489Caxton Sonnes of Aymon x. 258 Bayarde went not the lityll pase, but went lyke a sualowe. 1594Shakes. Rich. III, v. ii. 23 True Hope is swift, and flyes with Swallowes wings.
c. Prov. one swallow does not make a summer (and allusions to it).
Cf. Gr. µία χελιδὼν ἔαρ οὐ ποιεῖ.
1539Taverner Erasm. Prov. (1552) 25 It is not one swalowe that bryngeth in somer. It is not one good qualitie that maketh a man good. 1546J. Heywood Prov. (1867) 57 One swalowe maketh not sommer (said I) men saie. a1548Hall Chron., Hen. IV, 30 He well remembred that one faire day assureth not a good Sommer, nor one fliyng Swalow prognosticateth not a good yere. 1589Nashe Pref. to Greene's Menaphon Wks. 1905 III. 323, I would preferre diuine Master Spencer..Neither is he the onely swallow of our Summer. 1617Moryson Itin. iii. 43 Lest I should seeme by one Swallow to make Summer,..the men of Herefordshire can witnes, that such examples are not rare in England. 1636Prynne Rem. agst. Shipmoney 18 Since in such Taxes commonly, one Swallow makes a kinde of Sommer. 1821Scott Kenilw. xvii, Raleigh..disowning..that one day's fair reception made a favourite, any more than one swallow a summer.
d. ellipt. for swallow dive below.
1902Encycl. Brit. XXXIII. 121/2 The ‘swallow’ is one of the most thrilling dives. 1971‘D. Halliday’ Dolly & Doctor Bird xi. 148 Sergeant Trotter himself nipped up the diving-board and executed a swallow and somersault.
e. transf. A woman employed by the Soviet intelligence service, who seduces men for the purposes of espionage. slang.
1972D. Bloodworth Any Number can Play ix. 69 You have doubtless read about the..‘swallows’ of the KGB, the young ladies trained..to bed down intelligence targets, so that they can be comfortably and conveniently bugged and photographed in compromising..positions? 1976‘M. Barak’ Secret List H. Roehm xii. 130, I need a swallow in America. One..who is sexually skilled and expert in obtaining information. 1979P. Way Sunrise i. 15 Had she been working for the KGB, Joanna would have been..called a ‘swallow’. In the CIA she would have been a ‘honeypot’.
2. a. In extended sense, any bird of the swallow kind, or of the family Hirundinidæ, e.g. a martin; often misapplied to (and in earlier scientific use including) the swifts, now reckoned as a distinct and unrelated family (Cypselidæ).
In OE., stæþswealwe, lit. shore-swallow, meant ‘sand-martin’. Also, heoruswealwe, lit. sword-swallow, occurs in poetry for ‘hawk’.
1758Phil. Trans. LI. 464 There are four distinct species of birds, that go under the general name swallow; viz. the swift or black martin; 2. the swallow, that builds in chimneys; 3. the martin, that builds against houses; 4. the sand martin, that builds in sand-banks. 1792–5J. Aikin & Mrs. Barbauld Evenings at Home II. 20 The Martins and other swallows. 1867T. R. Jones Nat. Hist. Birds (1872) 51 The extensive race of Swallows and Swifts. 1885Newton in Encycl. Brit. XVIII. 47/2 The Hirundinidæ or Swallows.
b. With qualifying words, applied to various species of Hirundinidæ or Cypselidæ; also to birds of other families resembling swallows: as bank-swallow, barn-s., carr-s., chimney-s., house-s., sea-swallow.
cliff swallow, one of several species of the genus Petrochelidon, nesting in cliffs. esculent swallow, a name for the swifts of the genus Collocalia, which construct the ‘edible bird's nests’ of which soup is made in China. tree swallow, (a) an Australian swallow of the genus Hylochelidon, which lays in holes in trees; (b) the N. American white-bellied or white-breasted swallow, Tachycineta (Iridoprocne) bicolor, which nests in trees. † water swallow, ? a water-wagtail. window swallow, the house-martin, Chelidon urbica. wood swallow, (a) = swallow-shrike (see 4); (b) = tree swallow (b). (Several other species are named in Latham's Gen. Synopsis Birds, 1783, and other ornithological works, Morris's Austral English, 1898, etc.)
1870Lowell Study Wind. (1886) 18 The *cliff-swallow..has come and gone.
1783Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds IV. 578 *Esculent Sw[allow]..the nest..is composed of such materials as not only to be edible, but accounted as one of the greatest dainties of the Asiatic epicures. 1813[see esculent A. 1 ⁋].
1873Buller Birds New Zealand 141 Hylochelidon nigricans. (Australian *Tree-swallow.)
1552Cooper Elyot's Dict., Cinclos..the byrde called a *water swallow, not muche bigger than a larke. Eras. saith..that it is a certaine byrd, so weake and feeble, that she can not make hir owne nest, and so laieth hir egges in other byrdes nestes. 1668Charleton Onomast. 108 Cinclus..the long⁓bill'd wagtail, and Half Snipe, aliis Water-Swallow.
1802Montagu Ornith. Dict. I, Swallow,..a genus of perchers..of which we have three species natives: the Bank, the Chimney, and the *Window, Swallow. 1817T. Forster Observ. Nat. Hist. Swallowtribe (ed. 6) 6 House Martin, or Window Swallow.
1869A. R. Wallace Malay Archip. I. 338 The curious *wood-swallows (Artami), which closely resemble swallows in their habits and flight..twitter from the tree-tops. 1887[see swallow-shrike in 4]. 1889C. Lumholtz Among Cannibals 28, I shot a young cuckoo..which was fed by four wood-swallows, (Artamus sordidus). 1893Scribner's Mag. June 774/1 The white-breasted or wood-swallow..is called tree-swallow in some regions, because it nests in hollow trees.
3.
†a. = sea-swallow 1.
b. Collector's name for a species of moth: see quot. 1832.
c. A variety of domestic pigeon: see quot. 1854.
1668Charleton Onomast. 138 Hirundo..the Swallow, or Great headed Flying Fish. 1832J. Rennie Butterfl. & M. 34 The Swallow (Leiocampa dictæa) appears the beginning of June and August. 1854L. A. Meall Moubray's Poultry 288 Swallow, distinguished by its ‘plunging or sailing in the air, when flying’. 1879L. Wright Pigeon Keeper 205 Swallows are very pretty and striking birds.
4. attrib. and Comb., as swallow family, swallow-flight (also fig.), swallow kind, swallow people, swallow tribe; swallow-throated adj.; swallow-like adj. and adv.; also † swallow-bird (swallow-bridde), a young swallow; swallow-chatterer, the waxwing; swallow-day, the day on which the swallows arrive, or are reputed to arrive; swallow dive, a forward dive in which the arms are extended sideways, to simulate the outline of a swallow, until just before entry into the water; also fig.; so swallow-diving; hence swallow-dive v. intr.; swallow-fish, † (a) the flying-fish (= sea-swallow 1); (b) the sapphirine gurnard, Trigla hirundo (Cent. Dict.); swallow-fly, † (a) some unidentified swift-flying insect; (b) a parasitic fly which infests swallows; swallow-flycatcher = swallow-shrike; † swallow-footed a., swift-footed, running swiftly as a swallow flies; swallow fork orig. Amer., a forked cut used in marking cattle or sheep on the ear (see quot. 1966); hence swallow-fork v. trans., to cut a swallow fork in (the ear); swallow-forked ppl. a., shaped so as to cut a swallow fork; swallow-hawk, (a) the black-winged kite, Elanus melanopterus; (b) the swallow-tailed kite, Elanoides forficatus; † swallow('s) herb = swallowwort 2; swallow-kite, the swallow-tailed kite; swallow pigeon = 3 c; swallow-shrike, a bird of the genus Artamus or family Artamidæ, found in India and Australia; swallow-smolt, a variety of speckled trout (see smolt n.1 2); swallow's nest, the nest of a swallow; transf. applied to a thing lodged at a height; spec. a battery of guns or company of shot placed on a height (cf. crow's nest 1); swallow's-nest fly, a fly that infests swallows' nests; also in swallow's nest soup, an oriental dish (see bird's-nest, bird-nest n. 1); swallow-stone (tr. L. chelidonius lapillus, Pliny), a stone fabled to be brought from the sea-shore by swallows to give sight to their young; † swallow-swifter compar. adj. (nonce-wd.), swifter than a swallow; swallow-tick, a species of tick which infests swallows; swallow-warbler, an Australian species of warbler (Sylvia hirundinacea), with plumage resembling that of a swallow; swallow-winged a., (a) swift as the swallow; (b) shaped like a swallow's wings; also (of a ship), having sails of such a shape; swallow-woodpecker, a woodpecker of the genus Melanerpes. See also swallow-tail, etc.
a1325Prose Psalter 180, Y shal alway crye mercy as a *swolwe-bridde.
1688Holme Armoury iii. 291/2 A kind of low footed Stool, or Cricket..with a ledge or border of Board nailed about the top of it, after the manner of a *Swallow Box.
1837Swainson Nat. Hist. Birds II. iii. vi. 71 Bombycillinæ, or *swallow chatterers.
1808T. Forster Circle of Seasons 15 Apr., *Swallow Day.
1898Swimming Mag. Oct. 46/1 To Englishmen the term ‘*swallow’ dive, not ‘swan’, would best convey the notion of this idealistic manner of reaching the water. 1971‘D. Halliday’ Dolly & Doctor Bird xi. 148 Sergeant Trotter, reappearing at the top of the diving-board, swallow-dived efficiently. 1976‘A. Hall’ Kobra Manifesto xvi. 215 Sassine had come off his high in a swallow dive.
1897Encycl. Sport II. 425/1 The most graceful is that termed ‘*swallow-diving’, the body being shot out from the board [etc.].
1858Baird Cycl. Nat. Sci., Hirundinidæ, the *Swallow family.
1601Holland Pliny xxxii. xi. II. 452 The sea *Swallow fish. 1661Lovell Hist. Anim. & Min. 234 Swallow-fish..hath hard flesh and therefore hardly concocted. 1681Grew Musæum i. v. iii. 116 The Swallow-Fish. So called from the length of his Gill-Fins, which reach to the end of his Tail, like a pair of very long Wings.
1850Tennyson In Mem. xlviii, She..loosens from the lip Short *swallow-flights of song, that dip Their wings in tears, and skim away. 1883J. Payn Thicker than Water xxii, After several swallow-flights of talk.
1668Charleton Onomast. 43 Chelidon (quia volatu post se omnes relinquit) the *Swallow-fly. 1815Kirby & Sp. Entomol. iv. (1818) I. 112 The swallow-fly (Ornithomyia Hirundinis..L.)..has been known to make its repast on the human species.
1885Encycl. Brit. XVIII. 38/1 *Swallow-Flycatchers (Artamus).
1636W. Denny in Ann. Dubrensia (1877) 14 The *Swallow⁓footed Grey-hound.
1636Plymouth (Mass.) Rec. (1889) I. 1 Every mans marke of his Cattle... Christopher Waddesworth a *swallow forke. 1869Overland Monthly III. 126 An over-slope and a slit in the right, and a swallow-fork in the left. 1934Amer. Ballads & Folk Songs xvi. 409 They cropped and swallow-forked his ears. 1966Publ. Amer. Dial. Soc. 1964 xlii. 16 Swallow fork, two slits run together to form a W or an M.
1972P. Newton Sheep Thief xvi. 134 It was a pair of *swallow-forked ear⁓markers.
1858Baird Cycl. Nat. Sci. s.v. Milvinæ, The black winged *swallow-hawk..lives principally upon insects which it catches upon the wing.
1578Lyte Dodoens 32 The great Celandyne is named in Greeke χελιδονιον, that is to say, *Swallow-herbe. 1647Hexham i. (Herbs), Swallowes hearbe, swaluw-kruydt.
1687Dryden Hind & P. iii. 547 Some Swifts, the Gyants of the *Swallow kind. 1773G. White Selborne, To Pennant 9 Nov., All the swallow kind sip their water as they sweep over the face of pools or rivers.
1840Macgillivray Brit. Birds I. 47 Nauclerus. *Swallow-kite.
1582Stanyhurst æneis iv. (Arb.) 101 Furth she quicklye galops, with wingflight *swallolyke hastning. 1606Sylvester Du Bartas ii. iv. ii. Magnificence 747 Arm'd with Arrows,..Swift Swallow-like. 1843Penny Cycl. XXV. 272/1 The Swallow-like Campylopterians [humming-birds]. 1896‘Ian Maclaren’ Kate Carnegie 209 Old Sandie Ferguson..whose arrival, swallowlike, heralded the approach of the great occasion.
1730–46Thomson Autumn 836 Warn'd of approaching Winter, gather'd, play The *swallow-people.
1881Lyell Pigeons 85 The *swallow pigeon..has its name from its resemblance in marking to the tern or sea swallow.
1887Newton in Encycl. Brit. XXII. 730/2 The Indian and Australian Artamus (the species of which genus are often known as Wood-Swallows, or *Swallow-Shrikes).
1847Stoddart Angler's Comp. 36 The *Swallow-Smolt of Tweed.
1604E. Grimstone Hist. Siege Ostend 166 The besieged shot three peeces at the *swalloes nest, and dismounted three of the enemies Canons. 1796Nemnich Polygl.-Lex., Swallow's-nest fly, Hippobosca avicularia. 1823Scott Quentin D. iii, Certain cradles of iron, called ‘swallows' nests’, from which the sentinels..could..take deliberate aim. 1849Balfour Man. Bot. §1130 The edible swallows'-nests of the East. 1878Mrs. F. D. Bridges Jrnl. Lady's Trav. round World i. 19 Sept. (1883) 13 We are living with 200 monks in a sort of swallows'-nest monastery, perched half-way up the face of a cliff. 1920E. & P. Sykes Through Deserts & Oases Central Asia iv. 78 Swallows' nest soup is almost unprocurable nowadays. 1976Times 14 Feb. 10/4 A real Thai Chinese restaurant..three colours swallow's nest soup..or even plain shark's fin soup.
1586Bright Melanch. xxxix. 257 The chalydony, or *swallowe stone, found in the mawes of young swallowes. 1668Charleton Onomast. 258 Chelidonius, Swallow-stone.
1598Sylvester Du Bartas ii. ii. iii. Colonies 429 *Swallow⁓swifter surges.
1879L. Wright Pigeon Keeper 148 If there be white in it or above it under the throat at all, the bird has the fault of being ‘*swallow-throated’.
1826G. Samouelle Direct. Collect. Insects & Crust. 55 The Forest Fly, Sheep and *Swallow-tick.
1768Pennant Brit. Zool. II. 248 Concerning the manner the *swallow tribes dispose of themselves after their disappearance from the countries in which they make their summer residence. 1867T. R. Jones Nat. Hist. Birds (1872) 58 The swallow tribes manifest a decided predilection for the neighbourhood of water.
1801Latham Gen. Synopsis Birds Suppl. II. 250 *Swallow Warbler..This is a small species; all above the plumage is black.
1597Pilgr. Parnass. ii. 268 Shall not wee..To Parnass hast with *swallow-winged speede? 1629Massinger Picture ii. i, Ill news, madam, Are swallow-winged. 1865J. H. Ingraham Pillar of Fire (1872) 154 A long swallow-winged sail. 1902Munsey's Mag. XXV. 486/1 The swallow-winged Levantine barques.
1837Swainson Nat. Hist. Birds II. iii. ix. 135 The fifth and last genus (Melanerpes) may not unaptly be called *swallow woodpeckers, for they resemble those birds in their migratory habits, their long wings, and their black glossy plumage.
▪ II. swallow, n.2|ˈswɒləʊ|
Forms: α. 1 ᵹeswelᵹ, swelh, 4 swelw(ȝ), Kent. zuelȝ, 4 suelhu, 4–5 swelowe, 5 swelw(h)e, swelgh, sweloghe, sweluh, 6 Sc. swellie. β. 4 swolȝ, swolw(ȝ), swolouȝ, -owhe, -ewe, 4–5 swolwe, swolow(e, 5 swolwh, 6 pl. swolues, 7 swollow. γ. 4–6 swalowe, 5 swalgh, swalo, (pl. swaloes, sualowe, sqwalowe), 5–6 swalow, (6 pl. swalous, Sc. swallie, 9 north. dial. swall(e)y), 6– swallow.
[late OE. ᵹeswelᵹ, *swelᵹ, swelh gulf, abyss, corresp. to MLG. swelch (also swalch) throat, whirlpool, gluttony, glutton, OHG. swelgo glutton (MHG. swelhe, swelch, also swalch abyss, flood), ON. svelgr whirlpool, swallower, devourer; f. swelg-: swalg- (see swallow v.). The phonetic development has followed that of the verb.]
1. A deep hole or opening in the earth; a pit, gulf, abyss. Obs. exc. as in b.
αa1100in Napier OE. Glosses 215/5 Hiatum, opertionem vel foveam terre, swelh. 1382Wyclif 1 Kings xi. 27 Salomon beeldide Mello, and euenede the swelwȝ [1388 swolowe] of the citee of Dauid. c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) viii. 29 Þare er swelghes in þe erthe allway brynnand.
β1382Wyclif Prov. xiii. 15 In the weye of dispiseris a swolwȝ [1388 a swalowe; Vulg. in itinere contemptorum vorago]. c1385Chaucer L.G.W. 1104 (Dido) This Eneas is come to Paradys Out of the swolow of helle. 1481Caxton Myrr. ii. xviii. 106 Ther in the myddle of therthe a place whiche is called Abisme or swolowe.
γ1388Swalowe [see 1382 in β]. c1530Ld. Berners Arth. Lyt. Bryt. (1814) 43 The abysme and swalowe of the earth. 1636R. James tr. Minucius Felix' Octavius 22 Into the swallow of a prodigious deepe gulfe. 1665Manley Grotius' Low C. Wars 515 They were ignorant, what Swallows and Quagmires lay hid in the deceitful Nature of the Soil. 1694Phil. Trans. XVIII. 6 The Ground..is sunk from the level,..and ends in a very deep Circular Gulf or Swallow. 1799Kirwan Geol. Ess. 284 This mountain contains beds of pyrites and vast swallows.
b. spec. An opening or cavity, such as are common in limestone formations, through which a stream disappears underground: also called swallow-pit, swallow-hole, and locally swallet.
1610Holland Camden's Brit. 297 The [river] Mole [in Surrey]..is swallowed up, and thereof the place is called the Swallow. 1681Beaumont in Philos. Collect. No. 2. 3 Certain waters which..were conveyed into the ground by a swallow. c1700Kennett MS. Lansd. 1033, Swallow-pit, where hollow caverns remain in the earth upon mineworks. 1789E. Darwin Bot. Gard. ii. (1791) 96 note, The Swallows..or basons on some of the mountains, like Volcanic Craters, where the rain-water sinks into the earth. 1855J. Phillips Man. Geol. 412 Every limestone hill..shows in its swallows and moor pits the erosive power of the atmospheric water. 1895Naturalist 258 A streamlet..runs..eastward, for about fifty yards, and then disappears in a ‘swallow’, to reappear in another fifty yards and resume its course.
2. A depth or abyss of water; a yawning gulf; a whirlpool. Obs. or arch.
αa1100Gloss. Aldhelm De Laud. Virg. (Napier) 119/4620 Carybdibus .i. uoraginibus, ᵹeswelᵹum. c1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 1453 So ar þo Nykeres faste aboute..schipmen..To som swelw [v.r. suelhu] to turne or steke, Oþer a-geyn roches to breke. 1382Wyclif Jonah ii. 4 Alle thi swelowis and wawis passiden on me. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) II. 41 Bytwene þis ilond Mon and Norþ Wales, is a swelowe [MS. α. swolwȝ; 1432–50 swalo; Caxton swolow]. c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) v. 16 Sum saise þat it es a swelgh [v.r. sweloghe] of þe Grauelly See. c1440Promp. Parv. 482/2 Swelwhe, of a water or of a grownde (K. swelwe, S. swelth, P. swelowe), vorago.
βc1380Wyclif Wks. (1880) 97 Þei may be wel licned to swolwis of þe see. 1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 65 Þilke tweie swolwes beeþ i-cleped Scylla and Charybdis. c1430Lydg. Min. Poems (1911) 69 Future swolwys of fortunys ffloodys. 1485Caxton Chas. Gt. iii. ii. 205 An abysme or swolowe of water. 1566J. Studley tr. Seneca's Medea 2649 Amyd the iustlyng swolues of seas that whot with furye frye.
γc1400Destr. Troy 13299 Full swift to the swalgh me swinget the flode. 1432–50tr. Higden (Rolls) I. 65 There be other swaloes of the see in the occean. 1470–85Malory Arthur xvii. ii. 691 There they myght not londe for there was a swalowe of the see. c1510Barclay Mirr. Gd. Manners (1570) C j, Swalous, quicsandes, and fordes perillous. a1533Ld. Berners Gold. Bk. M. Aurel. (1546) R viij, Wyll ye..entre agayne into the swalowe of the see, for to engloutte you? 1604Meeting of Gallants 10 And fall into the large swallow of Scylla. 1615T. Adams Spir. Navig. Ep. Ded. 2 What Rocks, Gulphs, Swallowes..and other perils that may endanger you are marked out. 1639Horn & Rob. Gate Lang. Unl. vii. §70 A swallow, gulfe or quag-mire. 1887Morris Odyss. xii. 350 Better to perish gasping in the swallow of the sea.
†3. fig. A gulf, abyss, sink (of evil). Obs.
c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 390 Also freris ben ressett, and a swolowhe of symonye,..and of thefftis. c1412Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 4479 He is þe swolwe þat is neuere ful: At Auerice now haue here a pul. 1426Lydg. De Guil. Pilgr. 16293 The wofull swolwh off Dysespeyr and Desperacioun. 1563Winȝet tr. Vincent. Lirin. xxx. Wks. (S.T.S.) II. 63 That auld swellie of filthines. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 118 Mony walde be drawne heidlings into the deip swallie of al abhominable vice. 1621T. Williamson tr. Goulart's Wise Vieillard 149 To draw vs out of the swallowes and gulfes of intemperance..and all..excesse. a1624Bp. M. Smith Serm. (1632) 146 Carried head-long by a maine current of disorder, into a bottomlesse swallow of confusion.
4. The passage through which food and drink are swallowed; the throat, pharynx, or gullet, or these collectively; the gorge.
13..E.E. Allit. P. C. 250 A..whal..swyftely swenged hym to swepe & his swolȝ opened. a1400–50Wars Alex. 4507 Bary [read Bacy = Bacchus] he was brayne-wode for bebbing of wynes, Forþi þe swire & þe swalow þat swiere he kepis.
1608Topsell Serpents 16 Heereby they..make wider their passage or swallow, for then they suddenly goble in the..meate before them. 1658A. Fox Würtz' Surg. ii. x. 86 [If] there is fear that a bloud vein hath been hurt, or that the swallow and throat be cut. 1745tr. Egede's Descr. Greenland 87 All Sorts of Fishes..run into the wide opened Swallow of this hideous Monster. 1873Mivart Elem. Anat. xi. 433 The mouth..which opens behind into the swallow or pharynx. 1884M. Mackenzie Dis. Throat & Nose II. 157 In most..cases it is stated that the patient had a ‘small swallow’ since childhood. 1884Symonds Shaks. Predec. iii. 115 Like a shark's open swallow. 1902Brit. Med. Jrnl. 5 Apr., Epit. Lit. 55 Those patients who have stenosis of the swallow.
transf.1698Fryer Acc. E. India & P. 57 We passed to it through a narrow Bite, which expatiates into a wide Swallow.
b. Considered in relation to its capacity for swallowing; hence transf. capacity of swallowing; appetite for food or drink; voracity; also fig. appetite, relish, inclination.
1592Nashe P. Penilesse 23 Thou hast a foule swallow, if it come once to carousing of humane bloud. 1596Harington Metam. Ajax Prol. B v, Whose throates haue a better swallow, then their heds haue capacity. 1624Massinger Parl. Love iv. v, 'Twill not down, sir! I have no swallow for 't. a1754Fielding Conversation Wks. 1771 VIII. 126 Methus..measures the honesty and understanding of mankind by a capaciousness of their swallow. 1831T. L. Peacock Crotchet Castle i, The Reverend Doctor Folliott, a gentleman endowed with a tolerable stock of learning, an interminable swallow, and an indefatigable pair of lungs. 1871M. Collins Mrq. & Merch. III. iii. 78 He..with most voracious swallow Walks into my mutton chops.
5. fig.
a. in reference to consuming or ‘devouring’ (cf. swallow v. 4 a).
1607Puritan iii. iv. 58 If I fall into the hungrie swallow of the prison, I am like vtterly to perish. 1628Feltham Resolves ii. [i.] xlvii. 139 With what a generall swallow, Death still gapes vpon the generall world! 1688South Serm., Prov. xii. 22 (1697) I. 551 His Ungodly swallow, in gorging down the Estates of helpless Widows.
b. in reference to acceptance or belief (cf. swallow v. 5).
1624Middleton Game at Chess iv. ii, The swallow of my conscience Hath but a narrow passage. 1662W. Gurnall Chr. in Arm. verse 17. ii. xxvi. §1. (1679) 323/2 One sin will widen thy swallow a little, that thou wilt not so much strein at the next. 1677W. Hughes Man of Sin ii. i. 9 That the Apostles should leave the Care of all the Churches, to take up that of one Particular Church..can never go down with any but a Roman Swallow. 1697Locke Let. to Molyneux 10 Apr., Even the largest minds have but narrow swallows. 1757J. H. Grose Voy. E. Indies 289 Mahomet..knowing as he did the reach and temper of his countrymen, he most probably adapted his religion to their swallow. 1852Thackeray Esmond ii. iii, Of these tales,..Mr. Esmond believed as much as he chose. His kinswoman's greater faith had swallow for them all. 1867Lowell Percival Pr. Wks. 1890 II. 155 There was no praise too ample for the easy elasticity of his swallow.
†6. The function of swallowing; the sense of taste; transf. a taste, a small quantity tasted (in quot. fig.). Obs.
1340Ayenb. 50 Þe mouþ heþ tuo offices huerof þe on belongeþ to þe zuelȝ ase to þe mete an to þe drinke. Ibid. 82 Hare wyt is al myswent and corupt ase þe zuelȝ of þe zyke. Ibid. 247 Þe ilke greate zuetnesse þet þe herte contemplatif uelþ..ne is bote a litel zuelȝ huerby me smackeþ hou god is zuete.
1826Blackw. Mag. XIX. 659 Patients with callous appetites and hebetated tongues, who have lost the delighted sense of swallow.
7. A single act of swallowing; a gulp.
1822T. G. Wainewright Ess. & Crit. (1880) 257, I must drink this glass of sherry exactly at three swallows. 1835J. Wilson Noctes Ambr. Jan., Wks. 1856 IV. 225 The difference between a civilised swallow and a barbarous bolt. 1851Mayhew Lond. Labour I. 207/2 When she'd had a clean swallow she says [etc.]. 1882Sala Amer. Revis. (1885) 60 He..drank it at one swallow.
b. A quantity (esp. of liquid) swallowed at once; a mouthful swallowed.
1861P. B. Du Chaillu Equat. Afr. vi. 63, I took a swallow of brandy. 1883Century Mag. XXVI. 277/1 To live like an Arab, content with a few dates and a swallow from the gourd. 1904F. Lynde Grafters ii. 24 The Honorable Jasper..took a swallow of water from the glass on the desk.
8. a. The space between the sheave and the shell in a pulley-block, through which the rope runs. b. In a millstone: see quot. 1880.
c1860H. Stuart Seaman's Catech. 37 Name the parts of a block. The shell, sheave,..swallow, head. 1880J. Lomas Alkali Trade 217 [In a mill] the ‘swallow’, or recess cut in the centre of the running stone, must be of ample size.
9. A fish that inflates itself by swallowing air; also called puffer, puff-fish, or swell-fish.
1876Goode Fishes of Bermudas 22 Chilichthys Spengleri,..Swallow, Puff-fish.
▪ III. swallow, v.|ˈswɒləʊ|
Forms: α. 1 swelᵹan, (-sweolᵹan, -swylᵹan), 3rd sing. swilhþ, swilᵹþ, swylᵹþ, -swyleþ, swelhþ, swelᵹþ, swelþ, swelᵹeþ, 3 swelȝe(n, 3rd sing. sweleð, 4 swelghe, swelugh, -igh, swelwe, Kent. -zuelȝe, 3rd sing. zuel(ȝ)þ, -zuylþ, 4–5 swelewe, -owe, 5 -awe, swelle, swelwyn, swellyn; Sc. 4 swely, 5–6 suelly, 5–6 (9 dial.) swelly, 6 swellie, 9 dial. swill(e)y. β. 2–3 swoleȝen, 3 -uwen, sw(e)olhen, sw(e)olȝe, Orm. swollȝhenn, 3–5 swolewe(n, swolwe, 4–5 swolow(e, swolo(n, 5 swoolow, sqwolwe, 6 Sc., 9 dial. swolly, 6–7 swollow. γ. 3 -swalȝe, 4–6 swalow(e, 6 Sc. swallie, 6–7 swallowe, 9 dial. swalley, 6– swallow. pa. tense strong 1 swealᵹ, 1–2 swealh, 3 swaluȝ, -sualȝ, 4 swalewe, Kent. -zualȝ; weak 4 swelwed, swelowede, suelid, -ud, -yt, 5 swelwyd, swellyd, swelud; 4 swolȝed, swolewede, swolowyd, squolowde, 5 swolewed, -owed, swolut, sowoluyd; 4 swalud, swalled, 5 swalod, 6– swallowed. pa. pple. strong 1 -swolᵹen, (-swelᵹen), 3 iswolwe, isuolȝe, swolȝe(n, 3–5 swolwe, 4 a-swolwe, Kent. -zuolȝe; weak (i)swelewed, -owed, sweliȝhid, swelwid; Sc. and north. 5 swelȝed, suelȝit, suelled, 6 suellyit; 4 swolȝed, (i)swolwed, swolewed, -owid, 5 -owet, swolwyd, swolyt, 6 Sc. swolit; 4 swalughid, 5 sualoghed, swaloyd, 6 swalowed, 6– swallowed.
[Com. Teut. orig. str. vb. (not recorded for Gothic): OE. swelᵹan, swealh, swulᵹon, swolᵹen = OLFrank. (far)suelgan, MDu. swelgen, swalch, geswolgen (Du. zwelgen), MLG. swelgen, swelligen, (LG. swelgen), OHG. swel(a)han, swelgan, swalh, giswolgin (MHG. swelhen, swelgen, G. schwelgen wk.), ON. svelga, svalg, sulgu, solginn, also wk. (MSw. svälgha, svalgh, svolgh, sulghen, solghin, also swolghet, Sw. svälja, Da. svælge); f. base swelg-: swalg-, represented also in the forms given s.v. swallow n.2; ulterior relations are undetermined.
As in German and the Scandinavian languages, this verb in English has become weak.
The encroachment of the o of the pa. pple. and the a of the pa. tense upon the pres. stem is evidenced from the 12th and 13th centuries respectively; it was perhaps furthered by association with swallow n.1]
1. a. trans. To take into the stomach through the throat and gullet, as food or drink. In early use and still poet. also more generally = to eat or drink up, devour: cf. forswallow. Also with down, in, up (see 10 a).
αc1000Sax. Leechd. II. 230 Laures leaf ceowe and þæt seaw swelᵹe. c1200Trin. Coll. Hom. 43 Ne þaue þu þat storm me duue, ne þat þe deuel me swelȝe. c1220Bestiary 315 He drageð ðe neddre of de ston..and sweleð it. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints xlvii. (Effame) 179 Bestis..Þat var of sa gret cruelte, Þat þai wald ryf & swely sone Mane or best. c1380Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 70 Þe more fishes swelewen þe lasse. c1440Promp. Parv. 482/2 Swelwyn (K. swellyn, P. swolowyn), glucio. c1480Henryson Orpheus & Eurydice 351 Thus Cerberus to swelly sparis nane. 1500–20Dunbar Poems lviii. 6 Sum swelleis swan, sum swelleis duke. 1536Bellenden Cron. Scot. (1821) I. p. xliv, Eftir the..quantite of the dew that thay swellie, thay consave and bredis the perle.
β [c1175Lamb. Hom. 123 He..forswoleȝeð þene hoc forð mid þan ese.] c1200Trin. Coll. Hom. 181 Teð hine grindeð. Tunge hine swoleȝeð. Ðrote turneð hine. 13..Sir Beues (A.) 2764 Ȝenande & gapande on him so, Ase he wolde him swolwe þo. c1380Wyclif Sel. Wks. III. 117 Þat þou swolow no more þan ys nede. c1386Chaucer Manciple's Prol. 36 See how he ganeth lo this dronken wight, As though he wolde swolwe vs anon right. 14..Tundale's Vis. 485 This hogy best..His sette to swolo [v.rr. swelowe, swolewe] couetows men. Ibid. 491 In tho profecy hit is wryton thus That a best schall swolewo [v.r. swelowe] the covetows. 1448–9J. Metham Amoryus & Cleopes 1352 Þe serpent a-sundyr þe bak dotht byte, And afftyr sqwolwyth yt in.
γ [c1205Lay. 28453 ævm wurðest þu Winchæstre, þæ eorðe þe scal forswalȝe (c 1275 for-swolȝe).] 1500–20Dunbar Poems xi. 27 Syne sall the swallow [v.r. swellie] with his mouth The dragone Death. 1534Lyndwode's Const. Provinc. 2 b, Pure wyne onely gyuen to theym to drynke that they maye the more easely & soner swalowe downe the sacramente whyche they haue receyued. 1617Moryson Itin. i. 245 The Ianizaries..did so swallow our wine, as when it was spent, we were forced to drinke water. 1677Johnson in Ray's Corr. (1848) 128 [Salmons] swallow the bait with the hook down into the stomach. a1700Evelyn Diary 2 Jan. 1684, A fellow who eate live charcoal..champing and swallowing them down. 1774Goldsm. Nat. Hist. (1824) III. 6 There is a power of animal assimilation lodged in the stomach of all creatures..converting substances they swallow into a fluid fitted for their own peculiar support. 1835T. Mitchell Acharn. of Aristoph. 910 note, A prize for the person who..should at a given signal first swallow a certain quantity of wine.
pa. tense str.c1000Eccles. Instit. in Thorpe Anc. Laws (1840) II. 398 He hiᵹ swealh, & hiᵹ eft aspaw on þa hattestan liᵹas. c1290S. Eng. Leg. I. 19/605 Heo me nam and swaluȝ me in. c1400St. Alexius (Laud 622) 611 A whal hym swalewe at oo word ffor oo morsel in hast.
pa. tense weaka1300Cursor M. 15383 Son it was þat morsel bun,..And Iudas suelid [Gött. suelud, Fairf. squolowde, Trin. swolewed] it onan. 13..St. Mergrete in Leg. Cath. (1840) 97 He toke hir in his foule mouthe And swalled hir flesche & bon. c1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 3785 Man & best he swelwed & et. c1440Alphabet of Tales 242 Þe devull in liknes of a dragon swalod hym hand & fute. 1481Caxton Reynard xxvii. (Arb.) 61 The roeke may wel complayne, for I swolowed in dame sharpbeck his wyf. 1821Scott Kenilw. xiv, Sussex..swallowed the medicine without farther hesitation.
pa. pple. str.a1250Owl & Night. 146 Þeos vle..sat toswolle and tobolewe So heo hedde one frogge iswolwe [v.r. isuolȝe]. c1250Gen. & Ex. 1976 Wilde der Hauen min sune swolȝen her. 13..Sir Beues (A.) 786 A..starede on Beues wiþ eien holwe, Also a wolde him haue a-swolwe.
pa. pple. wk.1387Trevisa Higden (Rolls) IV. 441 Som of hem þat flye,..delyuered hem of ieweles of gold þat þey hadde i-swolwed to fore þat þey flyȝ. c1450St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 734 Þe seele calfe..þat cuthbert buke had swelyed. c1450Mirk's Festial 200 A gret horryble dragon..wold haue swolyt her. 1560Rolland Seven Sages 61 My self this mater saw..That ane Infant was swellyit with ane sow. 1651Hobbes Leviath. iii. xxxii. 195 Pills..swallowed whole, have the vertue to cure. 1779Mirror No. 50 ⁋11 Having swallowed a short breakfast. 1872Tennyson Gareth & Lynette 1308 Some hold that he hath swallow'd infant flesh, Monster! 1910Encycl. Brit. II. 28/2 The bait had to be swallowed by the pike before the hook would take hold.
b. In fig. or allusive phr. to swallow one's spittle: (a) in renderings of Job vii. 19, where the reference is to the difficulty of swallowing when in distress; † (b) to restrain anger or other strong feeling, to repress the rising gorge. to swallow a camel, swallow a gudgeon, swallow a spider, swallow a tavern-token: see camel n. 1 c, gudgeon n.1 2 b, spider n. 1 d, tavern n. 4 d. to swallow the anchor, to retire from a sea-faring life; also transf. to have swallowed the dictionary: see dictionary 1 c.
c1400Pety Job 40 in 26 Pol. Poems 122 Thow woldest suffer neuer more Me to swolowe my salyue? c142126 Pol. Poems 108 How longe sparest þou me noȝt, To swolwe my spotel, bot it me gryue? 1535Coverdale Job vii. 19 Why goest thou not fro me, ner lettest me alone, so longe till I swalow downe my spetle? [Similarly 1611.] 1555Eden Decades (Arb.) 118 Owre men moued with greate hope and hunger of golde, beganne ageine to swalowe downe theyr spettle. 1580Lodge Reply Gosson's Sch. Abuse (Hunter. Cl.) 15 Mithinks while you heare thys I see you swallowe down your owne spittle for reuenge. a1592Greene Jas. IV. v. iv, None of you both, I see, but are in fault; Thus simple men, as I, do swallow flies. 1631Massinger Believe as You List i. ii, Hee durst not stay mee. Yf hee had, had founde I woulde not swallowe my spettle. a1714G. Lockhart in L. Papers (1817) I. 221 [They] were resolved not to swallow a cow and stick at the tail; and as they had begun, carried on, and finished their projects. 1733Swift On Poetry 122 And if you find the general vogue Pronounces you a stupid rogue,..Sit still, and swallow down your spittle. 1907J. Masefield Tarpaulin Muster xii. 129 An old sailor..had ‘swallowed the anchor’ in Colon. 1931A. R. L. Gardner Art of Crime 253 We are glad to be able to quote these..words to..our readers who may entertain..fears lest the crook proper should one day ‘swallow the anchor’ and retire permanently from the stage. 1977Islander (Victoria, B.C.) 22 May 6/1 But, now he had ‘swallowed the anchor’, he was a hard-headed business man.
c. absol. or intr. To take food, drink, etc. into the stomach through the gullet; to perform the act of deglutition, as in an effort to suppress emotion.
a1700in Cath. Rec. Soc. Publ. IX. 345 She not being able to swallow so as to communicate. 1803Med. Jrnl. X. 493 Every time he attempted to speak or swallow, he became more convulsed. 1883Stevenson Treas. Isl. i. ii, He kept swallowing as if he felt what we used to call a lump in the throat. 1906C. Mansfield Girl & Gods xvii, ‘I wonder if we hamper Psyche?’ ‘Don't!’ cried Phynides and swallowed quickly.
†2. trans. To taste (also fig.). Obs. rare.
a1340Hampole Psalter xxxiii. [xxxiv.] 8 Gustate et videte quoniam suauis est dominus, swelighis and sees for soft is lord. 1340Ayenb. 106 Huanne þe man onderuangþ þise yefþe he zuelȝ[þ] and smackeþ and uelþ þe zuetnesse of God. Ibid. 123 Loue of charite nimþ and zikþ and zuelȝþ and halt. a1400Relig. Pieces fr. Thornton MS. ii. (1914) 48 Þou sese with thyn eghne, heris with thyne eres, Swelawes with thi mouthe, Smelles with þi nese.
3. a. transf. To take into itself (physically); to cause to disappear in its interior or depths; to engulf. Also with down, in, up (see 10 b).
c1200Ormin 10224 Na mar þann helle maȝȝ beon full To swollȝhenn menness sawless. c1290Beket 2168 in S. Eng. Leg. I. 168 Þe eorþe openede onder heom for-to swolewen hem a-liue. a1340Hampole Psalter xiii. 5 A grafe oppynand, þat slas..and swalows þaim in. 13..E.E. Allit P. C. 363 To be swolȝed swyftly wyth þe swart erþe. c1384Chaucer H. Fame ii. 528 Whan tempest doth the shippes swalowe. c1400Sc. Trojan War ii. 2274 That swelt[h] half of my schippis has Suelled. c1450Mirk's Festial 4 Helle ȝeonyng, and galpyng..forto swolon hym ynto þe payne þat neuer schall haue ende. 1552Lyndesay Monarche 5999 The erth sall ryue, And swolly thame, boith man and wyue. 1667Milton P.L. xii. 196 The Sea Swallows him with his Host. c1690tr. Marana's Lett. Turkish Spy (1694) I. ii. xi. 125 After this Isle was suddenly swallowed down into the Sea. 1855Motley Dutch Rep. vi. i. (1866) 771/2 The lower part of the face was swallowed in a bushy beard. 1905E. Clodd Animism §9. 45 The earthquake that swallowed man and beast.
†b. refl. of a river losing itself in another.
1623tr. Favine's Theat. Hon. ii. i. 67 Where the Riuer of Lipp..runneth to swallow it selfe [orig. vient se perdre] in the Rhine.
4. fig.
a. To make away with, destroy, consume, cause to vanish (as if by devouring or absorption into itself). See also 10 c.
a1340Hampole Psalter cxxiii. 2 [cxxiv. 3] Perauntire þai had swelighid vs lifand. 13..E.E. Allit. P. B. 1268 Wyth þe swayf of þe sworde þat swolȝed hem alle. c1400Destr. Troy Prol. 12 Sothe stories ben..swolowet into swym by swiftenes of yeres. c1450Cov. Myst. (Shaks. Soc.) 83 But God in us have habytacion, Peraventure oure enemyes shulde swelle us. 1533Gau Richt Vay 45 As S. Paul sais..Deid is swolit throw wictore. 1610Holland Camden's Brit. (1637) 689 Three Schooles..which the greedy iniquity of these our times hath already swallowed. 1643in Verney Mem. (1907) I. 301, I see my ruine at the very dore ready to swallow mee. 1818Scott Br. Lamm. x, The apartment was suddenly illuminated by a flash of lightning, which seemed absolutely to swallow the darkness of the hall. 1837Carlyle Fr. Rev. ii. i. iv, To-day swallowing Yesterday, and then being in its turn swallowed of To-morrow. 1847Tennyson Princess v. 432 Sloughs That swallow common sense. 1870Morris Earthly Par. II. iii. 400 All strife was swallowed of festivity.
b. To cause to be ‘lost’ in something; to ‘drown’, ‘absorb’, engross, occupy wholly. (Now only with up: see 10 d.)
c1330Spec. Gy de Warw. 642 Þe pine of helle hem gan to swolewe. 1434Misyn Mending of Life xi. 125 All my hert..is turnyd in-to heet of lufe, & it is swaloyd In-to a-noþer Ioy and a-nodir form. 1645G. Daniel Wks. (Grosart) II. To Rdr. 2 In Some I have bene lost and Swallowed from my first intentions, by newer Thoughts. c1698Locke Cond. Underst. §36 The necessary Provison for Life swallows the greatest part of their Time.
c. To take in eagerly, ‘devour’ (with one's ears or mind).
1387–8T. Usk Test. Love Prol. (Skeat) l. 2 Men..that with eeres openly sprad, so moche swalowen the deliciousnesse of jestes and of ryme..that of the goodnesse..of the sentence take they litel hede. 1513Douglas æneis iv. xii. 35 Now lat ȝone cruell Troiane swelly and see [orig. hauriat oculis] This our fyre funerall. 1595Shakes. John iv. ii. 195, I saw a Smith..With open mouth swallowing a Taylors newes. c1645Howell Lett. (1650) I. 419 A man who weds himself to study, and swallows many books. 1834Maginn in Blackw. Mag. XXXV. 747 Dosy, who sate in open-mouthed wonder, swallowing them [sc. his stories] down as a common-councilman swallows turtle.
d. To take for oneself, or into itself, as a territory or other possession; to absorb, appropriate. (See also 10 e.)
1637in Foster Crt. Min. E. Ind. Comp. (1907) 267 [Without allowing for forfeiture of the bond for private trade, misapplication of the Company's money, or for] swalloweing [Burt's estate]. a1700Evelyn Diary 18 Nov. 1679, The Duke of Buckingham, much of whose estate he had swallowed. Ibid. 23 Sept. 1683, That the French King might the more easily swallow Flanders..whilst we sat unconcern'd. 1888Bryce Amer. Commw. xci. III. 263 One finds in the United States..many people who declare that Mexico will be swallowed.
e. Theatr. slang. To get up (a part) hastily.
1890Barrère & Leland Slang Dict., Swallow the cackle, (theatrical), to learn a part. 1898Tit Bits 30 July 338/1 The remaining acts [of the play] were in turn ‘swallowed’ during the successive intervals.
5. a. To accept without opposition or protest; to take (an oath, etc.) without demur or lightly.
a1591H. Smith Wks. (1867) II. 13 It is very like that these men swallow many sins, for God is never so forgotten as in feasting, and sporting, and bargaining. 1632Massinger City Madam i. i, Here's no gross flattery! Will she swallow this? 1646Bp. Maxwell Burd. Issach. in Phenix (1708) II. 303, I cannot sufficiently wonder, how the High Court of Parliament of England hath swallow'd and sworn their Covenant. 1762–71H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Paint. (1786) III. 107 The former laid a wager that there was no flattery so gross but his friend would swallow. 1789Gouv. Morris in Sparks Life & Writ. (1832) I. 325 The Representatives of this nation..are ready to swallow this proposition by acclamation. 1810Bentham Packing (1821) 191 Give them an oath to swallow. 1822J. Flint Lett. Amer. 171 In England, affidavits are often managed in a simpler way. Swallowing a customhouse oath is there a well known expression. 1853Lytton My Novel iv. xiv, People take you with all your faults, if you are rich; but they won't swallow your family into the bargain.
b. esp. To accept mentally without question or suspicion; to believe unquestioningly. † Also with down.
1594Nashe Unfort. Trav. 69 Beleeue nothing,..yet seeme thou as thou swallowedst al, suspectedst none. 1643Ord. Lords & Com., Westm. Conf. Pref. (1658) C 3, So many, especially of the younger sort, do swallow down almost any error that is offered them. 1690Locke Hum. Und. i. iv. §24 To make a Man swallow that for an innate Principle, which may serve to his purpose, who teacheth them. 1691Ray Creation ii. (1692) 83 He that can swallow the raining of Frogs. 1786Jefferson Writ. (1859) I. 516, I find that I could swallow the last opinion, sooner than either of the others. 1791F. Burney Diary 20 Aug., [She] will believe no good of them, and swallows all that is said of evil. 1870Freeman Norm. Conq. (ed. 2) II. App. 661 The legend is still swallowed by novelists. 1880Littledale Plain Reas. lxii. 135 Over-readiness to swallow marvels..is credulity.
6. To put up with, submit to, take patiently or submissively (something injurious or irksome). (Cf. F. avaler.)
1611Middleton & Dekker Roaring Girl D.'s Wks. 1873 III. 185 If I swallow this wrong, let her thanke you. 1613Purchas Pilgrimage i. xvii. 80 The mother (not able to swallow her shame and grief) cast her selfe into the lake. 1623J. Chamberlain in Crt. & Times Jas. I (1848) II. 442 And how many disgraces and indignities he swallowed, to bring his own ends about. 1710Swift Let. to Abp. King 10 Oct., They cannot give themselves the little troubles of attendance that other men are content to swallow. 1710― Jrnl. Stella 2 Nov., I took my four pills last night, and they lay an hour in my throat... I suppose I could swallow four affronts as easily. 1848Thackeray Van. Fair xvii, He was pompous, but with such a cook what would one not swallow?
7. To refrain from expressing or uttering; to keep down, repress. Also with down.
a1642S. Godolphin Poems, Ps. cxxxvii, Deny us freedom of our groans And bid us swallow all our moans. 1719Young Busiris iv. i, They..swallow down their tears to hide them from me. a1771Gray Dante 6, I swallow'd down My struggling Sorrow. 1809Malkin Gil Blas i. v. ⁋1 Swallowing my grievances [orig. dévorant ma douleur], [I] set myself to wait on my noble masters. 1820Byron Juan v. xxiv, Swallowing a heart-burning sigh. 1851D. Jerrold St. Giles iv. 31 [She] swallowed her mirth, and..busied herself at the cupboard. 1868Morris Earthly Par. (1870) I. i. 325 Then in his throat a swelling passion rose, Which yet he swallowed down. 1878R. B. Smith Carthage 296 Hannibal swallowed his resentment.
8. To take back, retract, recant. (Cf. eat v. 2 c.)
1593Shakes. Rich. II, i. i. 132 As low as to thy heart, Through the false passage of thy throat: thou lyest... Now swallow downe that Lye. 1603― Meas. for M. iii. i. 235 [He] swallowed his vowes whole, pretending in her, discoueries of dishonor. 1703Farquhar Inconstant iii. i, I have swallow'd my Words already; I have eaten them up. 1848Lowell Biglow P. Ser. i. iv. 16 A marciful Providence fashioned us holler O' purpose thet we might our principles swaller. 1889Barrie Window in Thrums xx. 195 If Jamie be living now he has still those words to swallow.
9. To pronounce indistinctly or fail to pronounce; to slur over. (Cf. F. manger.)
a1791Wesley Wks. (1830) XIII. 479 Some persons mumble, or swallow some words or syllables.
10. swallow up.
a. lit. To swallow completely or voraciously; to eat up, devour. Also absol.
1535Coverdale Obad. i. 16 Yee dryncke shall they, and swalowe vp, so that ye shall be, as though ye had neuer bene. 1600J. Pory tr. Leo's Africa ix. 346 The crocodile..swalloweth vp both the baite and the hooke. 1711Addison Spect. No. 10 ⁋3 Like Moses's Serpent, that immediately swallow'd up and devoured those of the ægyptians. 1880Stewart & Tait Unseen Univ. Introd. 15 Just as we cannot conceive of a man swallowing up [ed. 1876 devouring] himself, so [etc.].
b. transf. To engulf completely; to cause to disappear utterly in its depths. Cf. 3.
1526Tindale Rev. xii. 16 The erth opened her mought, and swalowed vppe the rever. 1535Coverdale Ps. cvi. 17 So the earth opened & swalowed vp Dathan. 1560J. Daus tr. Sleidane's Comm. 453 The shippes being..swallowed vp of the billowes did perishe. 1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 99 Certane difficile myres, quhilkes..sal gaip wyd, and swallie him vp in a maner to the deipth. 1610Holland Camden's Brit. (1637) 587 The first [river] is Hans, which being swallowed up under the ground, breaketh up againe three miles off. 1732Berkeley Alciphr. iv. §24 Because London was not swallowed up or consumed by fire from heaven. 1803Scott Let. in Lockhart (1837) I. xi. 392 This district..was swallowed up by the sea. 1823Lamb Elia Ser. ii. Old Margate Hoy, Sunken ships, and sumless treasures swallowed up in the unrestoring depths. 1832R. & J. Lander Exped. Niger I. vi. 245 The little legs of the child were swallowed up in his clumsy yellow boots. 1853James Agnes Sorel (1860) II. 103 The Castle gates swallowed them up, and nothing more was seen of them.
c. fig. To make away with or destroy completely; to cause to disappear utterly (as if by absorption). Cf. 4 a.
1530Tindale Answ. More i. xviii. Wks. (1572) 286/2 In y⊇ world to come loue shall swalow vp the other twoo [sc. faith and hope]. 1535Coverdale Ps. lvi[i]. 3 He shal..saue me from the reprofe of him that wolde swalowe me vp. 1626Gouge Serm. Dignity Chivalry §18 Delight in the things which men do, swalloweth up the pains that is taken about them. 1667Milton P.L. ii. 149 Those thoughts..swallowd up and lost In the wide womb of uncreated night. c1720De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 121 All people looked upon themselves as ruined and swallowed up. 1758J. Dalrymple Ess. Feudal Property (ed. 2) 122 The feudal law carries with it..a system of private rights, which swallow up all others, wherever it comes. 1847Helps Friends in C. i. vii. 105 Another rule is, not to let familiarity swallow up all courtesy. 1862Stanley Jew. Ch. (1877) I. v. 96 The man is swallowed up in the cause, the messenger in the message. 1864Bryce Holy Rom. Emp. v. (1875) 68 Since the powers it gave were autocratic and unlimited, it must swallow up all minor claims and dignities. 1875Jowett Plato (ed. 2) I. 446 Must not all things at last be swallowed up in death? 1885Manch. Exam. 12 May 5/3 Nearly a month will be swallowed up in the verification of the returns. 1901Scotsman 28 Feb. 7/1 The Irish names in the box swallowed up all the rest.
d. To occupy entirely, engross, ‘absorb’, ‘drown’; = 4 b.
1581J. Bell Haddon's Answ. Osor. 499 b, Blynded with selfe love, drowned in malice, swallowed upp with his owne conceipt. 1738Wesley Ps. viii. iii, Wonder dims my aching Eyes, And swallows up my Soul. 1815J. Smith Panorama Sci. & Art II. 194 The original intention of the experiment was lost sight of, by an unexpected result which swallowed up all their attention. 1857Keble Let. to Denison 14 Oct. in Maggs's Catal. Mar. (1897) 54/1 Since I came home [I] have been swallowed up with my little book on Eucharistical Adoration. 1891Kipling Light that Failed x. 205 He fell to work, whistling softly, and was swallowed up in the clean, clear joy of creation.
e. To take completely into itself, or for oneself; to appropriate, absorb (= 4 d); † in quot. 1544, to take fully upon oneself.
1544Betham Precepts War i. lxiii. D iv, A faythfull armye wyll swallowe vp all parylles, before that so lyberall a capytayne shuld haue any shame or reproche. 1654Bramhall Just Vind. ii. (1661) 21 The oppressions of the Court of Rome, which would swallow up..all original Jurisdiction. a1700Evelyn Diary 15 July 1683, The French King..having swallow'd up almost all Flanders. 1743Pococke Descr. East I. iv. i. 162 In upper Egypt there were formerly twenty-four provinces, but many of them are now swallow'd up by Arab Sheiks. 1884Sat. Rev. 7 June 737/1 Morocco..has escaped being swallowed by France because Spain has guarded it. 1889Gretton Memory's Harkb. 157 With Exton is joined the hamlet of Horn, now swallowed up in the Park.
† f. To take in eagerly: = 4 c. Obs. rare.
1593Shakes. Lucr. 1409 About him were a presse of gaping faces, Which seem'd to swallow vp his sound aduice.
g. To pass over (a distance) rapidly.
(Cf. devour 8 b.)
1890‘R. Boldrewood’ Col. Reformer (1891) 188 Three miles had been swallowed up ere the team steadied. [Cf. quot. 1899 s.v. swallowed ppl. a.] |