swymmen
Middle English
Alternative forms
- suymmyne, sweme, swemmen, swimmen, swyme, swymme
- (Northern) squim
Etymology
From Old English swimman, from Proto-West Germanic *swimman, from Proto-Germanic *swimmaną.
Forms in -e- and weak forms are possibly due to the conflation of this verb with an Old English *swemman.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈswimən/
Verb
swymmen
- To swim (move in water)
- To float (be buoyed above the water)
- To be on a moving object floating on water.
- To move like or in liquid.
Conjugation
Conjugation of swymmen (strong class 3 or weak in -ed)
| infinitive | (to) swymmen, swymme | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| present tense | past tense | ||
| 1st-person singular | swymme | swam, swymmed | |
| 2nd-person singular | swymmest | swumme, swam, swymmedest | |
| 3rd-person singular | swymmeth | swam, swymmed | |
| subjunctive singular | swymme | swumme1, swymmed1 | |
| imperative singular | — | ||
| plural2 | swymmen, swymme | swummen, swumme, swymmeden, swymmede | |
| imperative plural | swymmeth, swymme | — | |
| participles | swymmynge, swymmende | swummen, swumme, swymmed | |
1Replaced by the indicative in later Middle English.
2Sometimes used as a formal 2nd-person singular.
Descendants
- English: swim
- Scots: sweem, soom
References
- “swimmen, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.