swoon

[ swoon ]

See synonyms for: swoon swooned swooning on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)

to faint; lose consciousness.
to enter a state of hysterical rapture or ecstasy: The teenagers swooned at the sight of the singing star.

noun

a faint or fainting fit; syncope.

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 aa-¹ + swoon (noun), but probably continuing Old English āswōgen, past participle of āswōgan “to overcome” (see a-³), or geswōgen (past participle) “senseless, dead”

Other words from swoon

swoon·ing·ly, adverb
un·swoon·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use swoon in a sentence

In full, exquisite exhaustion, “Avalon” examines the debris of relationships, as told from the point of view of a suave loner, all backed by plush and luscious oceans of saxophone swoon.
Almost anarchy: The Style Council and the smooth sounds of sophisti-pop | Mina Tavakoli | November 20, 2020 | Washington Post
There’s something else to mention about the stocks’ swoon last month.
Stocks up, crude down as investors brace for a volatile week | Bernhard Warner | November 2, 2020 | Fortune
What other shameful secrets might a search of his Internet history turn up unrelated to his months swooning over ISIS?
The Scared Widdle Kitty of ISIS | Jacob Siegel | December 12, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
But it was the subtle things like his trademark side-smile or his formal “Mr. Torre” ways that had us swooning.
The Captain’s Log: Derek Jeter’s Lady-Killing Past, From ‘Yeah, Jeets!’ to Gift Baskets | Emily Shire | September 28, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Blogs and music sites were swooning over this kid and his unapologetic pictures.
When Harry Met Cancer | Itay Hod | April 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

Ten months ago, I described a similar silly swooning by Democrats eager to woo back Wall Street.
The Republican Street Fight Over Transparency in Government | Lawrence Lessig | March 26, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Three little words that left countless teenage girls swooning.
Ed Westwick on Life After Gossip Girl | Erin Cunningham | October 11, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
No sooner had she picked up the spindle, than she pricked her hand with it, and fell swooning.
The Story Of The Duchess Of Cicogne And Of Monsieur De Boulingrin | Anatole France
Everything swam before his eyes as if he were on the point of swooning.
The Child of Pleasure | Gabriele D'Annunzio
For the first time in four days he remembered his picking it up when Mrs. Hal Folsom collapsed at sight of Jake's swooning.
Warrior Gap | Charles King
I am not given to swooning, so that, after the first moment, I was quite alive to my exact situation.
The Strand Magazine, Volume V, Issue 28, April 1893 | Various
Lady visitor before swooning has sufficient presence of mind to ring the bell for assistance.
Mr. Punch's History of Modern England Vol. IV of IV. | Charles L. Graves

British Dictionary definitions for swoon

swoon

/ (swuːn) /

verb(intr)

a literary word for faint
to become ecstatic

noun

an instance of fainting

Origin of swoon

Old English geswōgen insensible, past participle of swōgan (unattested except in compounds) to suffocate

Also (archaic or dialect): swound

Derived forms of swoon

swooning, adjective
swooningly, adverb

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

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