swim
English[edit]
Etymology 1[edit]
From Middle English swymmen, from Old English swimman (“to swim, float”) (class III strong verb; past tense swamm, past participle geswummen), from Proto-West Germanic *swimman, from Proto-Germanic *swimmaną (“to swoon, lose consciousness, swim”), from Proto-Indo-European *swem(bʰ)- (“to be unsteady, move, swim”).
Pronunciation[edit]
Verb[edit]
swim (third-person singular simple present swims, present participle swimming, simple past swam or (archaic) swum, past participle swum)
- (intransitive) To move through the water, without touching the bottom; to propel oneself in water by natural means.
- 1720, Daniel Defoe, Captain Singleton, London: J. Brotherton, p. 87,[1]
- We were now all upon a Level, as to our travelling; being unshipp’d, for our Bark would swim no farther, and she was too heavy to carry on our Backs […]
- 1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess[2]:
- He turned back to the scene before him and the enormous new block of council dwellings. The design was some way after Corbusier but the block was built up on plinths and resembled an Atlantic liner swimming diagonally across the site.
- 2020 May 20, Paul Stephen, “NR beats floods to secure tracks to Drax”, in Rail, page 59:
- Meanwhile, NR faced an unexpected challenge when a night watchman spotted several Koi Carp swimming in floodwater close to the railway, after they had escaped from a nearby private residence. Wilson says the owner was eventually traced, and the fish were safely returned "after enjoying swimming around in a 3,000-acre lake".
- 1720, Daniel Defoe, Captain Singleton, London: J. Brotherton, p. 87,[1]
- (intransitive) To become immersed in, or as if in, or flooded with, or as if with, a liquid
- swimming in self-pity
- a bare few bits of meat swimming in watery sauce
- (intransitive) To move around freely because of excess space.
- 1777, The Poetical Preceptor; Or, a Collection of Select Pieces of Poetry, Etc
- A fam'd Sur-tout he wears, which once was blue, / And his foot swims in a capacious shoe.
- 1777, The Poetical Preceptor; Or, a Collection of Select Pieces of Poetry, Etc
- (transitive) To traverse (a specific body of water, or a specific distance) by swimming; or, to utilize a specific swimming stroke; or, to compete in a specific swimming event.
- For exercise, we like to swim laps around the pool.
- I want to swim the 200-yard breaststroke in the finals.
- 1697, “The Tenth Book of the Æneis”, in Virgil; John Dryden, transl., The Works of Virgil: Containing His Pastorals, Georgics, and Æneis. […], London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], OCLC 403869432:
- Sometimes he thought to swim the stormy main.
- (transitive, uncommon) To cause to swim.
- to swim a horse across a river
- Half of the guinea pigs were swum daily.
- (intransitive, archaic) To float.
- sink or swim
- 1599, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Iulius Cæsar”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act V, scene i]:
- Why, now, blow wind, swell billow, and swim bark!
The storm is up and all is on the hazard.
- Template:RQ:2 Kings
- (intransitive) To be overflowed or drenched.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Psalms 6:6:
- I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed to swim; I water my couch with my tears.
- 1730, James Thomson, “Autumn”, in The Seasons, London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, and sold by Thomas Cadell, […], published 1768, OCLC 642619686, line 336, page 127:
- Sudden, the ditches ſwell; the meadows ſwim.
- (transitive) To immerse in water to make the lighter parts float.
- to swim wheat in order to select seed
- (transitive, historical) To test (a suspected witch) by throwing into a river; those who floated rather than sinking were deemed to be witches.
- (intransitive) To glide along with a waving motion.
Conjugation[edit]
infinitive | swim | ||||||||||
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present participle | swimming | ||||||||||
past participle | swum | ||||||||||
simple | progressive | perfect | perfect progressive | ||||||||
present | I swim | we swim | I am swimming | we are swimming | I have swum | we have swum | I have been swimming | we have been swimming | |||
you swim | you swim | you are swimming | you are swimming | you have swum | you have swum | you have been swimming | you have been swimming | ||||
he swims | they swim | he is swimming | they are swimming | he has swum | they have swum | he has been swimming | they have been swimming | ||||
past | I swam | we swam | I was swimming | we were swimming | I had swum | we had swum | I had been swimming | we had been swimming | |||
you swam | you swam | you were swimming | you were swimming | you had swum | you had swum | you had been swimming | you had been swimming | ||||
he swam | they swam | he was swimming | they were swimming | he had swum | they had swum | he had been swimming | they had been swimming | ||||
future | I will swim | we will swim | I will be swimming | we will be swimming | I will have swum | we will have swum | I will have been swimming | we will have been swimming | |||
you will swim | you will swim | you will be swimming | you will be swimming | you will have swum | you will have swum | you will have been swimming | you will have been swimming | ||||
he will swim | they will swim | he will be swimming | they will be swimming | he will have swum | they will have swum | he will have been swimming | they will have been swimming | ||||
conditional | I would swim | we would swim | I would be swimming | we would be swimming | I would have swum | we would have swum | I would have been swimming | we would have been swimming | |||
you would swim | you would swim | you would be swimming | you would be swimming | you would have swum | you would have swum | you would have been swimming | you would have been swimming | ||||
he would swim | they would swim | he would be swimming | they would be swimming | he would have swum | they would have swum | he would have been swimming | they would have been swimming | ||||
imperative | swim |
Usage notes[edit]
- In Late Middle English and Early Modern English, the present participle form swimmand still sometimes occurred in Midlands and Northern dialects, for exampleː
- The water to nourish the fish swimmand. (The Towneley plays)
- Their young child Troiane, as swift as dolphin fish, swimmand away. (1513, Gavin Douglas, Virgil's Aeneid)
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
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Noun[edit]
swim (plural swims)
- An act or instance of swimming.
- I'm going for a swim.
- The sound, or air bladder, of a fish.
- (UK) A part of a stream much frequented by fish.
- A dance move of the 1960s in which the arms are moved in a freestyle swimming manner.
Derived terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
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Etymology 2[edit]
From Middle English swime, sweme, swaime (“a dizziness, swoon, trance”), from Old English swima (“a swoon, swimming in the head”).
Noun[edit]
swim (plural swims)
Verb[edit]
swim (third-person singular simple present swims, present participle swimming, simple past swam or (archaic) swum, past participle swum)
- (intransitive) To be dizzy or vertiginous; have a giddy sensation; to have, or appear to have, a whirling motion.
- 1837, Letitia Elizabeth Landon, Ethel Churchill, volume 1, page 291:
- She snatched the letter from Sir Jasper, who started as her icy hand touched his: she attempted to read the passage herself, but the letters seemed to swim before her gaze: they turned to fire; the paper dropped from her grasp; a thick mist appeared to gather over the room; she gave a convulsive shudder, and dropped on the floor perfectly insensible.
- My head was swimming after drinking two bottles of cheap wine.
Etymology 3[edit]
Abbreviation of someone who isn't me.
Noun[edit]
swim (plural not attested)
- (Internet slang, text messaging) Abbreviation of someone who isn't me. used as a way to avoid self-designation or self-incrimination, especially in online drug forums
See also[edit]
swim on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- friend of mine
References[edit]
- swim at OneLook Dictionary Search
- English terms inherited from Middle English
- English terms derived from Middle English
- English terms inherited from Old English
- English terms derived from Old English
- English terms inherited from Proto-West Germanic
- English terms derived from Proto-West Germanic
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