Word: swallow Part of Speech: verb Etymology: From Middle English swolwen, from Old English swelgan, from Proto-West Germanic *swelgan, from Proto-Germanic *swelganą (“to swallow, revel, devour”), from Proto-Indo-European *swelk- (“to gulp”). Cognate with Dutch zwelgen (“to revel, carouse, guzzle”), German schwelgen (“to delight, indulge”), Danish svælge (“to swallow”), Norwegian Bokmål svelge (“to swallow”), Norwegian Nynorsk svelgje (“to swallow”), Swedish svälja (“to swallow, gulp”), Faroese svølgja (“to swallow”), Icelandic svelgja (“to swallow”), Old English swillan, swilian (“to swill, wash out, gargle”). See also swill. The noun is from Middle English swolow, swolwe, from Old English swelh, swelg (“gulf, chasm”) and ġeswelge (“gulf, chasm, abyss, whirlpool”), both from Proto-West Germanic *swelg, *swalgi, from Proto-Germanic *swelgaz, *swalgiz. Cognate with Old English swiliġe (“pit”), Scots swelch, swellie, swallie (“an abyss in the sea, whirpool”), Middle Low German swelch (“whirlpool, eddy”), Dutch zwelg (“gorge, chasm, gullet, throat”), Old Norse svelgr (“whirlpool, current, stream”). Pronunciation: /ˈswɒl.əʊ/, /ˈswɒl.ə/, /ˈswɑ.loʊ/, [ˈswɑ.loʊ̯], /ˈswɑlə/ 1. To cause (food, drink etc.) to pass from the mouth into the stomach; to take into the stomach through the throat. Labels: transitive Example: What the liquor was I do not know, but it was not so strong but that I could swallow it in great gulps and found it less burning than my burning throat. Example: Clothes are to be worn and food is to be swallowed: they remain trapped in the physical world. 2. To take (something) in so that it disappears; to consume, absorb. Labels: transitive Example: The necessary provision of the life swallows the greatest part of their time. Example: His body, like so many others swallowed by the ocean's hungry maw, was never found. 3. To take food down into the stomach; to make the muscular contractions of the oesophagus to achieve this, often taken as a sign of nervousness or strong emotion. Labels: intransitive Example: My throat was so sore that I was unable to swallow. Example: She swallowed nervously then, appearing near sick with what she had to say. 4. To accept easily or without questions; to believe, accept. Labels: transitive Example: this humbug was readily swallowed by men who were supposed to be intelligent, Example: Most newspapers we saw swallowed whole an S.R. estimate that it would cost £20m to equip the Region with point heaters. 5. To engross; to appropriate; usually with up. Labels: intransitive Example: Homer excels […] in this, that he swallowed up the honour of those who succeeded him. 6. To retract; to recant. Labels: transitive Example: to swallow one's opinions Example: Left her in her tears, and dried not one of them with his comfort; swallowed his vows whole 7. To put up with; to bear patiently or without retaliation. Labels: transitive Example: to swallow an affront or insult 8. To fellate; perform oral sex. Labels: slang 9. To fellate; perform oral sex. Labels: euphemistic, slang, vulgar Example: Was she straight or was she gay? Did she spit or swallow? Was she smooth or hairy down there? Questions, questions. Example: "Look, a man like me only wants three things out of life." Frank ticked them off on the fingers of his right hand. “A wife that can cook, a girlfriend who swallows, and a steady stream of non-taxable income."