swallow
- 01 B1 Intermediate
v.to move food or drink from your mouth down your throat into your stomach.
v.to cause food, liquid, or other substances to pass from the mouth into the stomach via the oesophagus.
Simple“The pill was quite large, so she had to take a big drink of water to swallow it.”
In context“Patients with severe throat infections often find it difficult to swallow even liquid nourishment without significant discomfort.”
- 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to believe a story or an explanation without asking questions, even if it seems unlikely.
v.to accept a statement, story, or idea without protest or skepticism.
Simple“I can't believe he actually swallowed that ridiculous excuse about his car breaking down.”
In context“The public was not prepared to swallow the government's official explanation for the sudden increase in interest rates.”
- 03 B2 Upper Intermediate
v.to stop yourself from showing a feeling, like pride or anger.
v.to suppress or restrain an emotional response or utterance.
Simple“He had to swallow his pride and ask his parents for a loan.”
In context“She swallowed her anger and responded to the criticism with a professional, measured tone.”
- 04 B2 Upper Intermediate
n.a small bird with long, pointed wings and a tail that looks like a fork.
n.a migratory passerine bird of the family Hirundinidae, characterised by a deeply forked tail and graceful flight.
Simple“We saw a swallow building its nest under the roof of the old barn.”
In context“The arrival of the first swallow is traditionally regarded in many European cultures as a definitive sign of spring.”
- 05 B1 Intermediate
n.the amount of food or drink that you take into your stomach at one time.
n.the act of swallowing or the quantity of a substance taken in a single such act.
Simple“He took a quick swallow of coffee before rushing out the door.”
In context“After the long hike, a single swallow of cold water felt like the greatest luxury imaginable.”
- 06 C2 Proficiency
n.the opening in a pulley block that a rope passes through.
n.the space or opening in a pulley block between the sheave and the shell through which the rope is threaded.
Simple“The sailor checked the swallow of the block to make sure the rope wasn't stuck.”
In context“The boatswain noted that the rope was fraying because the swallow of the wooden block had become worn and jagged.”
“When I asked Huda, via Diane, about this new accommodation, she described mashing up food with her hands so that her daughter can swallow it.”
“The swallows that had been whizzing around the thatched cottages rested for a while.”
From Middle English swolwen, from Old English swelgan, from Proto-West Germanic swelgan, from Proto-Germanic swelganą (“to swallow, revel, devour”), from Proto-Indo-European *swelk- (“to gulp”). Cognate with Dutch zwelgen (“to revel, carouse, guzzle”), German schwelgen (“to delight, indulge”), Swedish svälja (“to swallow, gulp”), Icelandic svelgja (“to swallow”), Old English swillan, swilian (“to swill, wash out, gargle”). See also swill. The noun is from Middle English swolow, swolwe, from Old English swelh, swelg (“gulf, chasm”) and ġeswelge (“gulf, chasm, abyss, whirlpool”), both from Proto-West Germanic swelg, swalgi, from Proto-Germanic swelgaz, swalgiz. Cognate with Old English swiliġe (“pit”), Scots swelch, swellie, swallie (“an abyss in the sea, whirpool”), Middle Low German swelch (“whirlpool, eddy”), Dutch zwelg (“gorge, chasm, gullet, throat”), Old Norse svelgr (“whirlpool, current, stream”).
From Middle English swalwe, swalewe, swalowe, from Old English swealwe, from Proto-West Germanic swalwā, from Proto-Germanic swalwǭ. Cognate with Norwegian and Danish svale, Dutch zwaluw, German Schwalbe, Swedish svala.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.