swoon

American  

[swoon] / swun /

verb (used without object)

1. to faint; lose consciousness.

2. to enter a state of hysterical rapture or ecstasy.

   The teenagers swooned at the sight of the singing star.

---

noun

1. a faint or fainting fit; syncope.

swoon British  

/ swuːn /

verb

1. a literary word for faint

2. to become ecstatic

---

noun

1. an instance of fainting

Other Word Forms

• swooning adjective
• swooningly adverb
• unswooning adjective

Etymology

Origin of swoon

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English (verb) swo(w)nen “to faint,” originally as gerund swowening, swoghning “act of swooning,” ultimately continuing Old English -swōgan (in compounds) “to rush, overrun, choke”; Middle English (noun) partly derivative of the verb, partly extracted from in (a) swoune, on swoune, alteration of a swoune, aswoune “in a swoon,” as if equivalent to a a- ¹ + swoon (noun), but probably continuing Old English āswōgen, past participle of āswōgan “to overcome” ( a- ³ ), or geswōgen (past participle) “senseless, dead”

Example Sentences

It’s been the favorite since sending critics and film fans swooning upon release in September.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Reminders of Him” could use a little more swooning, a little less of the endless middle stretch of driving and talking, interrupted by wet sprints through thunderstorms.

From Los Angeles Times

The dreaded Hindenburg Omen, a technical indicator that has preceded stock market swoons, flashed several times in January and February.

From The Wall Street Journal

As scary as April’s Liberation Day stock swoon was, some Americans took advantage of the tumult to boost their gains in what turned out to eventually be a good year for the S&P 500.

From The Wall Street Journal

The psychology of this team is something that would make Sigmund Freud swoon.

From BBC

Related Words

• pass out