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Webster 1913 Edition

Swing

Swing

,
Verb.
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Swung
;
Archaic imp.
Swang
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Swinging
.]
[OE.
swingen
, AS.
swingan
to scourge, to fly, to flutter; akin to G.
schwingen
to winnow, to swingle, oscillate,
sich schwingen
to leap, to soar, OHG.
swingan
to throw, to scourge, to soar, Sw.
svinga
to swing, to whirl, Dan.
svinge
. Cf.
Swagger
,
Sway
,
Swinge
,
Swink
.]
1.
To move to and fro, as a body suspended in the air; to wave; to vibrate; to oscillate.
I tried if a pendulum would
swing
faster, or continue
swinging
longer, in case of exsuction of the air.
Boyle.
2.
To sway or move from one side or direction to another;
as, the door
swung
open
.
3.
To use a swing;
as, a boy
swings
for exercise or pleasure
. See
Swing
,
Noun.
, 3.
4.
(Naut.)
To turn round by action of wind or tide when at anchor;
as, a ship
swings
with the tide
.
5.
To be hanged.
[Colloq.]
D. Webster.
To swing round the circle
,
to make a complete circuit.
[Colloq.]
He had
swung round the circle
of theories and systems in which his age abounded, without finding relief.
A. V. G. Allen.

Swing

,
Verb.
T.
1.
To cause to swing or vibrate; to cause to move backward and forward, or from one side to the other.
He
swings
his tail, and swiftly turns his round.
Dryden.
They get on ropes, as you must have seen the children, and are
swung
by their men visitants.
Spectator.
2.
To give a circular movement to; to whirl; to brandish;
as, to
swing
a sword; to
swing
a club
; hence, colloquially, to manage;
as, to
swing
a business
.
3.
(Mach.)
To admit or turn (anything) for the purpose of shaping it; – said of a lathe;
as, the lathe can
swing
a pulley of 12 inches diameter
.
To swing a door
,
gate
, etc.
(Carp.)
,
to put it on hinges so that it can swing or turn.

Swing

,
Noun.
1.
The act of swinging; a waving, oscillating, or vibratory motion of a hanging or pivoted object; oscillation;
as, the
swing
of a pendulum
.
2.
Swaying motion from one side or direction to the other;
as, some men walk with a
swing
.
3.
A line, cord, or other thing suspended and hanging loose, upon which anything may swing; especially, an apparatus for recreation by swinging, commonly consisting of a rope, the two ends of which are attached overhead, as to the bough of a tree, a seat being placed in the loop at the bottom; also, any contrivance by which a similar motion is produced for amusement or exercise.
4.
Influence of power of a body put in swaying motion.
The ram that batters down the wall,
For the great
swing
and rudeness of his poise,
They place before his hand that made the engine.
Shakespeare
5.
Capacity of a turning lathe, as determined by the diameter of the largest object that can be turned in it.
6.
Free course; unrestrained liberty or license; tendency.
“Take thy swing.”
Dryden.
To prevent anything which may prove an obstacle to the full
swing
of his genius.
Burke.
Full swing
.
See under
Full
.
–
Swing beam
(Railway Mach.)
,
a crosspiece sustaining the car body, and so suspended from the framing of a truck that it may have an independent lateral motion.
–
Swing bridge
,
a form of drawbridge which swings horizontally, as on a vertical pivot.
–
Swing plow
, or
Swing plough
.
(a)
A plow without a fore wheel under the beam.
(b)
A reversible or sidehill plow.
–
Swing wheel
.
(a)
The scape-wheel in a clock, which drives the pendulum.
(b)
The balance of a watch.

Webster 1828 Edition

Swing

SWING

,
Verb.
I.
pret. and pp. swung.
1.
To move to and fro, as a body suspended in the air; to wave; to vibrate.
I tried if a pendulum would swing faster, or continue swinging longer in our receiver, if exhausted.
2.
To practice swinging; as, a man swings for health or pleasure.
3.
To move or float; also, to turn round an anchor; as, a ship swings with the tide.

SWING

,
Verb.
T.
To make to play loosely; to cause to wave or vibrate; as a body suspended in the air.
1.
To whirl round in the air.
--Swing thee in air, then dash thee down.
2.
To wave; to move to and from; as, a man swings his arms when he walks.
He swings his tail, and swiftly turns him round.
3.
To brandish; to flourish.

SWING

,
Noun.
A waving or vibratory motion; oscillation; as the swing of a pendulum.
1.
Motion from one side to the other. A haughty man struts or walks with a swing.
2.
A line, cord or other thing suspended and hanging loose; also, an apparatus suspended for persons to swing in.
3.
Influence or power of a body put in motion.
The ram that batters down the wall,
For the great swing and rudeness of his poise--
4.
Free course; unrestrained liberty or license.
Take thy swing.
To prevent any thing which may prove an obstacle to the full swing of his genius.
5.
The sweep or compass of a moving body.
6.
Unrestrained tendency; as the prevailing swing of corrupt nature; the swing of propensities.

Definition 2024

swing

swing

English

Verb

swing ‎(third-person singular simple present swings, present participle swinging, simple past swang or swung, past participle swung or (archaic) swungen)

  1. (intransitive) To rotate about an off-centre fixed point.
    The plant swung in the breeze.
    • 1912, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Tarzan of the Apes, Chapter 12
      With one accord the tribe swung rapidly toward the frightened cries, and there found Terkoz holding an old female by the hair and beating her unmercifully with his great hands.
  2. (intransitive) To dance.
  3. (intransitive) To ride on a swing.
    The children laughed as they swung.
  4. (intransitive) To participate in the swinging lifestyle; to participate in wife-swapping.
  5. (intransitive) To hang from the gallows.
  6. (intransitive, cricket, of a ball) to move sideways in its trajectory.
  7. (intransitive) To fluctuate or change.
    It wasn't long before the crowd's mood swung towards restless irritability.
  8. (transitive) To move (an object) backward and forward; to wave.
    He swung his sword as hard as he could.
  9. (transitive) To change (a numerical result); especially to change the outcome of an election.
  10. (transitive) To make (something) work; especially to afford (something) financially.
    If it’s not too expensive, I think we can swing it.
  11. (transitive, music) To play notes that are in pairs by making the first of the pair slightly longer than written (augmentation) and the second, resulting in a bouncy, uneven rhythm.
  12. (transitive, cricket) (of a bowler) to make the ball move sideways in its trajectory.
  13. (transitive and intransitive, boxing) To move one's arm in a punching motion.
  14. (transitive) In dancing, to turn around in a small circle with one's partner, holding hands or arms.
    "to swing one's partner", or simply "to swing"
  15. (transitive, engineering) To admit or turn something for the purpose of shaping it; said of a lathe.
    The lathe can swing a pulley of 12 inches diameter.
  16. (transitive, carpentry) To put (a door, gate, etc.) on hinges so that it can swing or turn.
  17. (nautical) To turn round by action of wind or tide when at anchor.
    A ship swings with the tide.
Derived terms
Troponyms
  • (to rotate about an off-centre fixed point): pivot, swivel
Translations

Etymology 2

From the above verb.

Noun

swing ‎(plural swings)

  1. The manner in which something is swung.
    He worked tirelessly to improve his golf swing.‎
    Door swing indicates direction the door opens.‎
    the swing of a pendulum‎
  2. A line, cord, or other thing suspended and hanging loose, upon which anything may swing.
  3. A hanging seat in a children's playground, for acrobats in a circus, or on a porch for relaxing.
    • 1918, W. B. Maxwell, chapter 12, in The Mirror and the Lamp:
      To Edward […] he was terrible, nerve-inflaming, poisonously asphyxiating. He sat rocking himself in the late Mr. Churchill's swing chair, smoking and twaddling.
  4. A dance style.
  5. (music) The genre of music associated with this dance style.
  6. The amount of change towards or away from something.
    1. (politics) In an election, the increase or decrease in the number of votes for opposition parties compared with votes for the incumbent party.
      The polls showed a wide swing to Labour.
  7. (cricket) Sideways movement of the ball as it flies through the air.
  8. The diameter that a lathe can cut.
  9. In a musical theater production, a performer who understudies several roles.
  10. A basic dance step in which a pair link hands and turn round together in a circle.
  11. Capacity of a turning lathe, as determined by the diameter of the largest object that can be turned in it.
  12. (obsolete) Free course; unrestrained liberty.
    • John Dryden
      Take thy swing.
    • Burke
      To prevent anything which may prove an obstacle to the full swing of his genius.
  13. (boxing) A type of hook with the arm more extended.
Quotations
  • 1937 June 11, Judy Garland, “All God’s Chillun Got Rhythm”, A day at the races, Sam Wood (director), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
    All God’s chillun got rhythm. All God's chillun got swing.
    Maybe haven't got money, maybe haven't got shoes.
    All God’s chillun got rhythm for to [sic.] push away their blues.
Derived terms
Translations

Anagrams

French

Etymology

Borrowing from English swing.

Noun

swing m ‎(plural swings)

  1. swing (all senses)

Italian

Etymology

Borrowing from English swing.

Noun

swing m ‎(invariable)

  1. swing (music and dance style; golf swing)

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowing from English swing.

Noun

swing m (plural swings)

  1. swing (a dance and music style)
  2. swinging (exchange of partners for sex)

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowing from English swing.

Noun

swing m ‎(plural swings)

  1. swing (dance)

Etymology

From Middle English swingen, from Old English swingan, from Proto-Germanic *swinganą (compare Low German swingen, German schwingen, Dutch zwingen, Swedish svinga), from Proto-Indo-European *su̯eng- (compare Scottish Gaelic seang ‎(“thin”)).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈswɪŋ/
  • Rhymes: -ɪŋ

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