Dictionaries › English

swap

Pronunciation: /ˈswɒp/

The English word “swap” has 9 meanings listed here.

verb

  1. To exchange or give (something) in an non-normal exchange (for something else).
  2. To hit, to strike.
  3. To beat the air, or ply the wings, with a sweeping motion or noise; to flap.
  4. To descend or fall; to rush hastily or violently.

noun

  1. An exchange of two comparable things.
  2. A financial derivative in which two parties agree to exchange one stream of non-normal cashflow against another stream.
  3. Space available in a swap file for use as auxiliary memory.
  4. A social meal at a restaurant between two university societies, usually involving drinking and banter; commonly associated with fining and pennying; equivalent to a crewdate at Oxford University.
  5. A blow; a stroke.

Etymology

From Middle English swappen (“to swap”), originally meaning "to hurl" or "to strike", the word alludes to striking hands together when making an exchange; probably from Old English *swappian, a secondary form of Old English swāpan (“to swoop”). Cognate with German schwappen (“to slosh, slop”). Compare also Middle English swippen (“to strike, hit”), from Old English swipian (“to scourge, strike,…

Keep exploring: in the interactive dictionary every word of a definition is a link. Open “swap” there

More English words

About this dictionary

The English dictionary on Glottosphere has 650,529 entries with a page. Browse the English dictionary.

Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.