swine

[swahyn]

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noun, plural swine.

any stout, cloven-hoofed artiodactyl of the Old World family Suidae, having a thick hide sparsely covered with coarse hair, a disklike snout, and an often short, tasseled tail: now of worldwide distribution and hunted or raised for its meat and other products.Compare hog, pig¹, wild boar.

the domestic hog, Sus scrofa.

a coarse, gross, or brutishly sensual person.

a contemptible person.

Nearby words

Origin of swine

before 900; Middle English; Old English swīn; cognate with German Schwein hog, Latin suīnus (adj.) porcine; akin to sow²

Related formsswine·like, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for swine

Gerald Ford and the swine flu pandemic that never happened in 1976 is a cautionary tale that government action can backfire.
How Presidents Handle Pandemics|Eleanor Clift|October 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Everyone in the mountains knew Hadji Murad, and how he slew the Russian swine.
The Chechen Grievance: Tolstoy’s ‘Hadji Murad’ After Boston|Benjamin Lytal|April 21, 2013|DAILY BEAST
A few years ago, this Joe Biden warned people not to ride on aircraft or subways out of fear of contracting “swine flu.”
Which Joe Biden Will Show Up for Thursday’s Debate?|Matt Latimer|October 11, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Some of the people who were inside there said: “Here come the swine,” and swore and threw stones and things at them.
‘Soldaten: Secret WWII Transcripts of German POWs’ by Soenke Neitzel & Harald Welzer|Sönke Neitzel, Harald Welzer|September 24, 2012|DAILY BEAST

She claimed that another group of fascists harassed her while she was driving her cab one night and called her a “Russian swine.”
Mother of Los Angeles’ Alleged Arsonist Had a Wild Life|Christine Pelisek|January 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
It is towards a country distant yet ever near, and it lies much removed from the Far Country where swine feed.
My War Experiences in Two Continents|Sarah Macnaughtan
We, poor prodigals, have been feeding long enough upon husks that the swine do eat, and crave a little nourishing food.
Atlantic Monthly, Vol. XII. July, 1863, No. LXIX.|Various
It is also the standard pasture for swine where it can be grown, and where alfalfa is not a staple crop.
Clovers and How to Grow Them|Thomas Shaw
That's a lie, my lad, for I see he's been putten a swine ring on yer snout to keep ye frae rooting up the ground.
A Son of Hagar|Sir Hall Caine
We had the gratification of adding to the health of Hartford for two summers by abating the swine nuisance.
The Funny Side of Physic|A. D. Crabtre

British Dictionary definitions for swine

swine

noun

plural swines a coarse or contemptible person

plural swine another name for a pig

Derived Formsswinelike, adjectiveswinish, adjectiveswinishly, adverbswinishness, noun

Word Origin for swine

Old English swīn; related to Old Norse svīn, Gothic swein, Latin suīnus relating to swine

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for swine

swine

Old English swin "pig, hog," from Proto-Germanic *swinan (cf. Old Saxon, Old Frisian Middle Low German, Old High German swin, Middle Dutch swijn, Dutch zwijn, German Schwein), neuter adjective (with suffix *-ino-) from PIE *su- (see sow (n.)). The native word, largely ousted by pig. Applied to persons from late 14c. Phrase pearls before swine (mid-14c.) is from Matt. vii:6; an early English formation of it was:

Ne ge ne wurpen eowre meregrotu toforan eo wrum swynon. [c.1000]

The Latin word was confused in French with marguerite "daisy" (the "pearl" of the field), and in Dutch the expression became "roses before swine."

Idioms and Phrases with swine

swine

see cast pearls before swine.

swine

noun, plural swine.

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Origin of swine

Examples from the Web for swine

swine

noun

Word Origin for swine

swine

swine