swallow

verb
/ˈswɒl.əʊ/

To cause (food, drink etc.) to pass from the mouth into the stomach; to take into the stomach through the throat.

Other meanings

To take (something) in so that it disappears; to consume, absorb.
To take food down into the stomach; to make the muscular contractions of the oesophagus to achieve this, often taken as a sign of nervousness or strong emotion.
“My throat was so sore that I was unable to swallow.”

Synonyms

get down

Example sentences

“The swallows are migratory birds which arrive in autumn.”
Tatoeba · AmarMecheri · CC0
“Not all swallows are migratory.”
Tatoeba · shekitten · CC0

Word history

From Old English "swelgan".

Where this comes from

This definition is adapted from “swallow” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; example sentences are from Tatoeba, credited to their authors above; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.