swelling

[swel-ing]

noun

1. the act of a person or thing that swells.

2. the condition of being or becoming swollen. swollen.

3. a swollen swollen part; a protuberance or prominence.

4. Pathology.,  an abnormal enlargement or protuberance, as that resulting from edema.

swelling

/ ˈswɛlɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of expansion or inflation

2. the state of being or becoming swollen

3. a swollen or inflated part or area

4. an abnormal enlargement of a bodily structure or part, esp as the result of injury

Other Word Forms

• unswelling adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of swelling¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English; swell + -ing ¹

Example Sentences

Despite still being on antibiotics to help cope with swelling, another individual award was then collected after a 13-point haul in a comfortable quarter-final victory over Australia.

From BBC

She was expecting thousands would turn up at most – but the crowds kept swelling.

From BBC

While the patient load is swelling, the hospital, too, has faced sharp cuts in its funding.

From BBC

For now, many are returning home amid the turmoil, but in the long run, if instability deepens, more are expected to flee Nepal again in search of work, swelling India's already burdened informal labour market.

From BBC

They animate the jar’s swelling surface, its bulge already emphasized by wide black bands around the neck and foot.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• abscess 
• blister 
• bruise 
• bump 
• contusion 
• inflammation 
• injury 
• nodule 
• sore 
• tumor 
• welt