swim

Meaning

Verb

1. (intransitive) To move through the water, without touching the bottom; to propel oneself in water by natural means.
2. (intransitive) To become immersed in, or as if in, or flooded with, or as if with, a liquid
3. (intransitive) To move around freely because of excess space.
4. (transitive) To traverse (a specific body of water, or a specific distance) by swimming; or, to use a specific swimming stroke; or, to compete in a specific swimming event.
5. (transitive, uncommon) To cause to swim.
6. (archaic, intransitive) To float.
7. (intransitive) To be overflowed or drenched.
8. (transitive) To immerse in water to make the lighter parts float.
9. (historical, transitive) To test (a suspected witch) by throwing into a river; those who floated rather than sinking were deemed to be witches.
10. (intransitive) To glide along with a waving motion.
11. (intransitive) To have a great quantity of something.

Noun

1. An act or instance of swimming.
2. The sound, or air bladder, of a fish.
3. (UK) A part of a stream much frequented by fish.
4. A dance or dance move of the 1960s in which the arms are moved in imitation of various swimming strokes, such as freestyle, breaststroke, etc.
5. (figuratively) The flow of events; being in the swim of things.

Noun

A dizziness; swoon.

Noun

Abbreviation of someone who isn't me, used as a way to avoid self-designation or self-incrimination, especially in online drug forums.

Synonyms

float

bathe

swimming

🏊

dive

feel dizzy

dizziness

bath

🛀

drown

make swim

tread water

be dizzy

confusion

go swimming

natation

giddiness

bathing

take a bath

vertigo

wade

waft

wash

🧽

waterlogged

whirl

become red

be confused

fully armed

be buoyant

wash oneself

bogey

dip

dizzy

💫

drift

have a swim

immerse

loitering

navigate

row

sail

shower

🚿

splash

struggle

surface

tizzy

turn

Translations

nager

🏊

nadar

🏊

schwimmen

🏊

nuotare

🏊

zwemmen

🏊

nadar

🏊

nedar

🏊

κολυμπώ

natare

سبح

nadar

flotar

yüzmek

🏊

natation

🏊

Pronounced as (IPA)

/swɪm/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: swymmen

Inherited from Old English: swimman

Cognate with Scots: sweem

Cognate with Saterland Frisian: swimme

Cognate with Western Frisian: swimme

Cognate with Dutch: zwemmen

Cognate with German: schwimmen

Cognate with Norwegian Bokmål: -

Cognate with Danish: svømme

Cognate with Swedish: simma

Cognate with Norwegian Nynorsk: symja

Inherited from Middle English: swime

Inherited from Old English: swīma

Cognate with Swedish: svimma

Cognate with Danish: svime

Cognate with Danish: besvime

In summary

From Middle English swymmen, from Old English swimman (“to swim, float”) (class III strong verb; past tense swamm, past participle geswummen), from Proto-West Germanic *swimman, from Proto-Germanic *swimmaną (“to swoon, lose consciousness, swim”), from Proto-Indo-European *swem(bʰ)- (“to be unsteady, move, swim”).
Cognates
Cognate with Scots sweem, soom (“to swim”), Saterland Frisian swimme (“to swim”), West Frisian swimme (“to swim, float”), Dutch zwemmen (“to swim”), German schwimmen (“to swim”), Norwegian Bokmål and Danish svømme (“to swim”), Swedish simma (“to swim”), Norwegian Nynorsk symja (“to swim”).