noun
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the act of expansion or inflation
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the state of being or becoming swollen
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a swollen or inflated part or area
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an abnormal enlargement of a bodily structure or part, esp as the result of injury
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of swelling
First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English; swell + -ing 1
Vocabulary lists containing swelling
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The queue of requests to connect to the grid has grown even faster, swelling to more than 400,000 megawatts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026
Inflammation adds swelling and pain, creating the familiar symptoms of osteoarthritis.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 6, 2026
Pasadena Humane said it rushed the bird to its Wildlife Center, where vets found swelling but no broken bones.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
"When it is not working properly, it can contribute to swelling, which can be a condition called lymphoedema."
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
He soon found himself haunch-deep in a swelling stream.
From "Abel's Island" by William Steig
Unlike the familiar bulges associated with communication sites, these swellings were not synapses.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 17, 2026
"Hereditary angioedema can cause patients severe swellings and intense pain, which can be life-threatening as well as restricting normal activities, such as going to work or school," he said.
From BBC ● Feb. 1, 2024
Many infected rabbits display a strange form of myxomatosis, developing massive swellings on their eyes and ears.
From New York Times ● Jun. 20, 2022
“One female refugee got swellings on her arms and legs and is unable to stand or walk, while one man, maybe because they’ve been at sea for too long, is a bit malnourished,” Nurul said.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 6, 2022
The herbicide 2,4-D has also produced tumorlike swellings in treated plants.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
