Etymology Explorer › Old English

Where does “swelgan” come from?

swelgan (Old English) comes from Proto-West Germanic *swelgan, from Proto-Germanic swelganą, from Proto-Indo-European swelk-, from Proto-Indo-European swel- — to smolder; burn; scorch; beam, board, frame,...

swelgan (Old English): to swallow; to eat up, devour

Definitions

  1. to swallow; to eat up, devour

Ancestry of “swelgan”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Proto-West Germanic*swelgan—
2Proto-Germanicswelganąto gulp, gobble, swallow, devour; to revel
3Proto-Indo-Europeanswelk-to gulp
4Proto-Indo-Europeanswel-to smolder; burn; scorch; beam, board, frame,...

Words derived from “swelgan”

  • swallow
  • swallowtail
  • swallower
  • swalloweth
  • swallowtailed
  • swallowable
  • swallowest
  • swallowwort
  • unswallowable
  • reswallow
  • midswallow
  • unswallow
  • swallowability
  • woodswallow
  • swallowfish
  • swallie
  • swallow-wort
  • swolȝen
  • swelwen
  • swolowen
  • swolwen
  • swelȝen
Every word from Proto-Indo-European swel- →