swim

[swim] /swɪm/
verb (used without object), swam, swum, swimming.
1.
to move in water by movements of the limbs, fins, tail, etc.
2.
to float on the surface of water or some other liquid.
3.
to move, rest, or be suspended in air as if swimming in water.
4.
to move, glide, or go smoothly over a surface.
5.
to be immersed or steeped in or overflowing or flooded with a liquid:
eyes swimming with tears.
6.
to be dizzy or giddy; seem to whirl:
My head began to swim.
verb (used with object), swam, swum, swimming.
7.
to move along in or cross (a body of water) by swimming:
to swim a lake.
8.
to perform (a particular stroke) in swimming:
to swim a sidestroke.
9.
to cause to swim or float, as on a stream.
10.
to furnish with sufficient water to swim or float.
noun
11.
an act, instance, or period of swimming.
12.
a motion as of swimming; a smooth, gliding movement.
Idioms
13.
in the swim, alert to or actively engaged in events; in the thick of things:
Despite her age, she is still in the swim.
Origin
before 900; Middle English swimmen, Old English swimman; cognate with Dutch zwemmen, German schwimmen, Old Norse svimma
Related forms
swimmable, adjective
swimmer, noun
nonswimmer, noun
outswim, verb, outswam, outswum, outswimming.
Examples from the web for swim
  • The briny sweetness you taste in the water when you swim in the bay is in the oysters too.
  • Salamanders cling to the sides, bottom and drain gate of the reservoir and swim through the water.
  • In the following year, the second sister received permission to mount upward through the water and to swim whither she pleased.
  • In the forced swim test, you put the mouse or rat in a cylinder of water where it cannot touch the bottom.
  • In sonar setups such as fish finders, pulses of sound bounce off the water's bottom--and off any creatures that happen to swim by.
  • It's a lovely experience to swim in this silky, non-smelly water.
  • But in the heat and humidity of a mid-South summer, perhaps the best feeling is to dive into the water for a refreshing swim.
  • Unlike many cats, they do not avoid water and can swim well.
  • Not only does he not swim, but he's kind of terrified of water.
  • She couldn't swim, but enjoyed standing at the water's edge with a pole in her hand.
British Dictionary definitions for swim

swim

/swɪm/
verb swims, swimming, swam, swum
1.
(intransitive) to move along in water, etc, by means of movements of the body or parts of the body, esp the arms and legs, or (in the case of fish) tail and fins
2.
(transitive) to cover (a distance or stretch of water) in this way
3.
(transitive) to compete in (a race) in this way
4.
(intransitive) to be supported by and on a liquid; float
5.
(transitive) to use (a particular stroke) in swimming
6.
(intransitive) to move smoothly, usually through air or over a surface
7.
(intransitive) to reel or seem to reel: my head swam, the room swam around me
8.
(intransitive; often foll by in or with) to be covered or flooded with water or other liquid
9.
(intransitive) often foll by in. to be liberally supplied (with): he's swimming in money
10.
(transitive) to cause to float or swim
11.
(transitive) to provide (something) with water deep enough to float in
12.
swim against the tide, swim against the stream, to resist prevailing opinion
13.
swim with the tide, swim with the stream, to conform to prevailing opinion
noun
14.
the act, an instance, or period of swimming
15.
any graceful gliding motion
16.
a condition of dizziness; swoon
17.
a pool in a river good for fishing
18.
(informal) in the swim, fashionable or active in social or political activities
Derived Forms
swimmable, adjective
swimmer, noun
swimming, noun, adjective
Word Origin
Old English swimman; related to Old Norse svima, German schwimmen, Gothic swumsl pond, Norwegian svamla to paddle
Word Origin and History for swim
v.

Old English swimman "to move in or on the water, float" (class III strong verb; past tense swamm, past participle swummen), from Proto-Germanic *swemjanan (cf. Old Saxon and Old High German swimman, Old Norse svimma, Dutch zwemmen, German schwimmen), from PIE root *swem- "to be in motion."

The root is sometimes said to be restricted to Germanic, but possible cognates are Welsh chwyf "motion," Old Irish do-sennaim "I hunt," Lithuanian sundyti "to chase." For the usual Indo-European word, see natatorium. Sense of "reel or move unsteadily" first recorded 1670s; of the head or brain, from 1702. Figurative phrase sink or swim is attested from mid-15c., often with reference to ordeals of suspected witches.

n.

1540s, "the clear part of any liquid" (above the sediment), from swim (v.). Meaning "part of a river or stream frequented by fish" (and hence fishermen) is from 1828, and is probably the source of the figurative meaning "the current of the latest affairs or events" (1869).

Slang definitions & phrases for swim

swim

verb

To perform well; succeed; fly: I didn't think the Harptones quite swam last time I saw them

[1970s+; perhaps fr sink or swim]


Related Abbreviations for swim

SWIM

solar wind interplanetary measurements
Idioms and Phrases with swim

swim

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