swollen

[ swoh-luh n ]

/ ˈswoʊ lən /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR swollen ON THESAURUS.COM

verb

a past participle of swell.

adjective

enlarged by or as by swelling; puffed up; tumid.

turgid or bombastic.

Nearby words

Related formsswol·len·ly, adverbswol·len·ness, nounun·swol·len, adjective

swell

[ swel ]

/ swɛl /

verb (used without object), swelled, swol·len or swelled, swell·ing.

to grow in bulk, as by the absorption of moisture or the processes of growth.

Pathology. to increase abnormally in size, as by inflation, distention, accumulation of fluids, or the like: Her ankles swelled from standing.

to rise in waves, as the sea.

to well up, as a spring or as tears.

to bulge out, as a sail or the middle of a cask.

to grow in amount, degree, force, etc.

to increase gradually in volume or intensity, as sound: The music swelled.

to arise and grow within one, as a feeling or emotion.

to become puffed up with pride.

verb (used with object), swelled, swol·len or swelled, swell·ing.

to cause to grow in bulk.

to cause to increase gradually in loudness: to swell a musical tone.

to cause (a thing) to bulge out or be protuberant.

to increase in amount, degree, force, etc.

to affect with a strong, expansive emotion.

to puff up with pride.

noun

the act of swelling or the condition of being swollen.

inflation or distention.

a protuberant part.

a wave, especially when long and unbroken, or a series of such waves.

a gradually rising elevation of the land.

an increase in amount, degree, force, etc.

a gradual increase in loudness of sound.

Music.

a gradual increase (crescendo) followed by a gradual decrease (diminuendo) in loudness or force of musical sound.
the sign (< >) for indicating this.
a device, as in an organ, by which the loudness of tones may be varied.

a swelling of emotion within one.

Slang.

a fashionably dressed person; dandy.
a socially prominent person.

adjective Informal.

(of things) stylish; elegant: a swell hotel.

(of persons) fashionably dressed or socially prominent.

first-rate; fine: a swell party.

Origin of swell

before 900; Middle English swellen (v.), Old English swellan; cognate with Dutch zwellen, German schwellen, Old Norse svella; akin to Gothic ufswalleins pride

SYNONYMS FOR swell

1. distend, expand. 5. protrude. 10. inflate, expand. 17. swelling. 18. bulge. 19. billow. 27, 28. grand.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR swell ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR swell

1. contract. 13. decrease, diminish.

SEE MORE ANTONYMS FOR swell ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formsre·swell, verb, re·swelled, re·swelled or re·swol·len, re·swell·ing.un·der·swell, verb (used without object), un·der·swelled, un·der·swelled or un·der·swol·len, un·der·swell·ing.un·der·swell, nounun·swelled, adjective

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

Examples from the Web for swollen

So the discs get all floppy, swollen, pop out left, pop out right.
Why Is Louis C.K. So Funny? He Uses Humor as a Moral Compass.|Andrew Romano|May 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But the attitude of doctors was that if the lymph glands were swollen it was a good sign of a body fighting infection.
Sean Strub: Sex, AIDS, Politics and Survival|Tim Teeman|January 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
According to Robertson—not a registered dietician—low carb diets “build up clinkers” and “you get swollen joints, you get gout.”
Diet Like Jesus: What the Bible Says About How to Eat|Candida Moss|October 15, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Lifting his swollen hands and visibly cut-up wrists as proof, he leads me through a trail of wounds.
James McAvoy Tackles ‘Macbeth’|Abby Haglage|March 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST

“The art of biography has produced all these swollen books,” McMurtry told me.
Larry McMurtry on the Villainous Custer and the Myths of the West|Nick Romeo|November 17, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Seeing them, Avdotya could not restrain her tears; they simply spurted from her red and swollen eyes.
Knock, Knock, Knock and Other Stories|Ivan Turgenev
With a sigh of relief she stretches out her aching and swollen arms.
The Executioner's Knife|Eugne Sue
Soon afterwards ten of his men came in, loaded with swollen wine-bags.
The World's Greatest Books, Vol. I|Various
Some of the southern goats have swollen ears, but what the cause of this trouble is no one has yet determined.
Practical Angora Goat Raising|C. P. Bailey
He had cried so that his eyes were all swollen up, and he was a sight to behold.
Five Little Peppers at School|Margaret Sidney

British Dictionary definitions for swollen

swollen

/ (ˈswəʊlən) /

verb

a past participle of swell

adjective

tumid or enlarged by or as if by swelling

turgid or bombastic

Derived Formsswollenly, adverbswollenness, noun

swell

/ (swɛl) /

verb swells, swelling, swelled, swollen or swelled

to grow or cause to grow in size, esp as a result of internal pressureCompare contract (def. 1), contract (def. 3)

to expand or cause to expand at a particular point or above the surrounding level; protrude

to grow or cause to grow in size, amount, intensity, or degreethe party is swelling with new recruits

to puff or be puffed up with pride or another emotion

(intr) (of seas or lakes) to rise in waves

(intr) to well up or overflow

(tr) to make (a musical phrase) increase gradually in volume and then diminish

noun

the undulating movement of the surface of the open sea
a succession of waves or a single large wave

a swelling or being swollen; expansion

an increase in quantity or degree; inflation

a bulge; protuberance

a gentle hill

informal a person very fashionably dressed

informal a man of high social or political standing

music a crescendo followed by an immediate diminuendo

Also called: swell organ music

a set of pipes on an organ housed in a box (swell box) fitted with a shutter operated by a pedal, which can be opened or closed to control the volume
the manual on an organ controlling thisCompare choir (def. 4), great (def. 21)

adjective

informal stylish or grand

slang excellent; first-class

Word Origin for swell

Old English swellan; related to Old Norse svella, Old Frisian swella, German schwellen

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 swollen

swollen

adj.

early 14c., past participle adjective from swell (v.); from Old English geswollen, past participle of swellan.

swell

Old English swellan "grow or make bigger" (past tense sweall, past participle swollen), from Proto-Germanic *swelnanan (cf. Old Saxon swellan, Old Norse svella, Old Frisian swella, Middle Dutch swellen, Dutch zwellen, Old High German swellan, German schwellen), of unknown origin.

swell

early 13c., "a morbid swelling," from swell (v.). In reference to a rise of the sea, it is attested from c.1600. The meaning "wealthy, elegant person" is first recorded 1786; hence the adjectival meaning "fashionably dressed or equipped" (1810), both from the notion of "puffed-up, pompous" behavior. The sense of "good, excellent" first occurs 1897, and as a stand-alone expression of satisfaction it is recorded from 1930 in American English.

swollen

verb

adjective

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Nearby words

swell

verb (used without object), swelled, swol·len or swelled, swell·ing.

verb (used with object), swelled, swol·len or swelled, swell·ing.

noun

adjective Informal.

Origin of swell

Examples from the Web for swollen

swollen

verb

adjective

swell

verb swells, swelling, swelled, swollen or swelled

noun

adjective

Word Origin for swell

swollen

swell

swell