swan

English

English Wikipedia has an article on:

swan

Wikipedia

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /swɒn/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /swɑn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒn

Etymology 1

From Middle English swan, from Old English swan, from Proto-West Germanic *swan, from Proto-Germanic *swanaz (“swan”, literally “the singing bird”), from Proto-Indo-European *swonh₂-/*swenh₂- (“to sing, make sound”).

Cognate with West Frisian swan, Low German Swaan, swan, Dutch zwaan, German Schwan, Danish svane, Norwegian svane, Swedish svan. Related also to Old English ġeswin (“melody, song”), Old English swinsian (“to make melody”).

Further cognates include (possibly) Russian звон (zvon, “ring, chime”); Latin sonus (“sound”), Sanskrit स्वन् (svan, “sound”). Doublet of sound.

Noun

swan (plural swans or swan)

1. Any of various species of large, long-necked waterfowl, of genus Cygnus (bird family: Anatidae), most of which have white plumage.
2. (figuratively) One whose grace etc. suggests a swan.
3. (heraldry) This bird used as a heraldic charge, sometimes with a crown around its neck (e. g. the arms of Buckinghamshire).

Hyponyms

• cob (adult male)
• cygnet (epicene, young)
• pen (adult female)

Holonyms

• lamentation

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

swan (third-person singular simple present swans, present participle swanning, simple past and past participle swanned)

1. (intransitive) To travel or move about in an aimless, idle, or pretentiously casual way.
   • 2010, Lee Rourke, The Canal, Melville House Publishing, →ISBN, unnumbered page:

     He swans around that stinking office in his expensive clothes that are a little too tight for comfort, he swans around that stinking office without a care in the world.

   • 2013, Tilly Bagshawe, One Summer’s Afternoon‎, HarperCollin, →ISBN:

     One of the few strokes of good luck Emma had had in recent days was the news that Tatiana Flint-Hamilton, her only real rival for top billing as 'most photographable girl' at today's event had decided to swan off to Sardinia instead, leaving the limelight entirely to Emma.

   • 2022, Ling Ma, “G”, in Bliss Montage, New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, →ISBN:

     On the other side: the rich, beautiful tapestry of WASP culture that constituted Levis's life—friends playing horseshoes at backyard cocktail parties, where girls swanned in chaise longues, clinking their gin and tonics.

Usage notes

• In the sense “to travel”, usually used as part of the phrase “to swan about” or “to swan around”.

Etymology 2

Probably from dialectal I s’wan, a corruption of I shall warrant; or possibly from a minced form of I swear on.

Alternative forms

• swanny

Verb

swan (third-person singular simple present swans, present participle swanning, simple past and past participle swanned)

1. (US, dialectal or colloquial) To declare (chiefly in first-person present constructions).
   • 1907 December, J. D. Archer, “Foiling an eavesdropper”, in Telephony, volume 14, page 345:

     "Well, I swan, man, I had a better opinion of you than that."

   • 1940, Raymond Chandler, Farewell, My Lovely, Penguin, published 2010, page 214:

     ‘She slammed the door so hard I figured a window'd break […] .’ ‘I swan,’ I said.

Anagrams

• NASW, WANs, Wans, awns, sawn, wans

Middle English

Etymology 1

From Old English swan, from Proto-West Germanic *swan, from Proto-Germanic *swanaz.

Alternative forms

• swanne, swane, suan, swon, sqwan

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /swan/

Noun

swan (plural swannes)

1. swan (bird of the genus Cygnus)
2. The meat of a swan.
3. (heraldry) A swan as a heraldic symbol.

Descendants

• English: swan
• Scots: swan

References

• “swan, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-06-11.

Etymology 2

From Old English swān.

Noun

swan

1. Alternative form of swon (“pigherder”)

Old English

Etymology 1

From Proto-West Germanic *swan, from Proto-Germanic *swanaz, probably from Proto-Indo-European *swenh₂- (“to sound, resound”). Compare Old Saxon swan (Low German Swaan), Dutch zwaan, Old High German swan (German Schwan), Old Norse svanr (Swedish svan).

Alternative forms

• swon, suan, suon

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /swɑn/

Noun

swan m

1. swan

Declension

Synonyms

• ielfete

Descendants

• Middle English: swan
  • English: swan
  • Scots: swan

Etymology 2

From Proto-Germanic *swainaz. Doublet of sweġen, a borrowing from Old Norse.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /swɑːn/

Noun

swān m

2. man; warrior
3. herdsman; herder
4. servant
5. boy; lad

Descendants

• Middle English: swon, swan, swone

West Frisian

Etymology

From Old Frisian *swan, from Proto-West Germanic *swan, from Proto-Germanic *swanaz, probably from Proto-Indo-European *swenh₂- (“to sound, resound”).

Noun

swan c (plural swannen, diminutive swantsje)

1. swan

Derived terms

• briedswan
• gûlswan
• kloekswan
• klokswan
• knobbelswan
• trompetswan

Further reading

• “swan”, in Wurdboek fan de Fryske taal (in Dutch), 2011