swayn.

Brit.

/sweɪ/, U.S.

/sweɪ/

Forms: Middle English sweighe, Middle English, 1700s sweigh, Middle English–1500s (1800s dialect) swey, Middle English swegh, sweyh, sweyȝ, swyȝe, Middle English–1500s sweygh, 1500s swaie, swaye, swaigh(e, swea, suey, suai, 1700s–1800s dialect swee, swye, 1500s– sway.

Etymology: In branch I < sway v.; with sense 1 compare East Frisian swei movement in a curve. In branch II partly of different origin; for sense 12 compare Old Norse sveigr (Swedish sveg, Norwegian sveig) switch, twig.

I. The action of sway v.

†1. The motion of a rotating or revolving body.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in specific manner > revolution or rotation > [noun]

swayc1374

turning1390

overwhelming?a1439

circumvolution1447

winding1530

conversion1541

rotationa1550

revolution1566

gyring?1578

revolve1598

circulation1605

gyration1615

evolution1654

sweep1679

gyrating1837

revolving1867

c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Cambr.) i. met. v. 13 O Thow..which..tornest the heuene with a Rauessyng sweyh [v.r. sweighe].

c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. ii. pr. i. 22 The swyftnesse and the sweyȝ [v.r. sweyes] of hir [sc. Fortune's] turnynge wheel.

c1386 G. Chaucer Man of Law's Tale 198 O firste moeuyng crueel firmament, With thy diurnal sweigh that crowdest ay And hurlest al from Est til Occident.

1412–20 J. Lydgate tr. Hist. Troy ii. 2024 As Fortune..List on hir whele make a man ascende,..And with a swyȝe þrow hym to meschaunce.

1426 J. Lydgate tr. G. de Guileville Pilgrimage Life Man 12234 iiij spookys..Set vp-on an Extre large, Of the sweygh to bere the charge.

1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. ii. i. 376 To know heau'ns course, & how heau'ns constant swaies, The yeere in months, the months deuvide in daies.

1610 Histrio-mastix i. 227 Turne a huge wheele: contrary to the sway Place me a flye uppon't.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) i. iii. 3 Are not you mou'd, when all the sway of Earth Shakes, like a thing vnfirme?

a. The sweeping or swinging motion of a heavy body, a storm, etc.; the impetus or momentum of a body, etc. in motion. Obsolete or dialect.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > [noun] > force of movement

coursec1330

swough1338

swayc1374

birra1382

feezec1405

impetc1440

radeur1477

ravina1500

sweight1513

bensela1522

swinge1583

impetus1656

motive power1702

impulse1715

momentum1740

impulsion1795

send1890

c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde ii. 1383 Whan þat þe sturdy ok..Receyued hath þe happy fallyng strok The grete sweigh doth it to come al at onys.

?c1550 tr. P. Vergil Three Bks. Eng. Hist. (1844) 16 The bridge..being broken with the swey of people that thronged over the same.

1568 V. Skinner tr. R. González de Montes Discouery Inquisition of Spayne f. 24^v That he may fall downe with a sway.

1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry iv. f. 188 Great Maules and Beetles, which the more angerly the Beare shoueth aside, with the greater sway they come vpon his head againe.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. x. sig. X6 Vntill a nation straung,..With their importune sway, This land inuaded with like violence.

1645 J. Ussher Body of Divin. (1647) 74 In a field there are many battels,..yet all turn head with one sway at once.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vi. 251 With huge two-handed sway Brandisht aloft the horrid edge came down.

1700 J. Dryden tr. Ovid Ceyx & Alcyone in Fables 367 The Hero tenth advanc'd before the rest, Sweeps all before him with impetuous Sway.

1757 T. Gray Ode II ii. ii, in Odes 17 Regardless of the sweeping Whirlwind's sway.

1802 C. James New Mil. Dict. Sway, the swing or sweep of a weapon.

1816 P. B. Shelley Alastor 27 Seized by the sway of the ascending stream.

1825 W. Scott Talisman xiv, in Tales Crusaders IV. 306 The glittering broadsword..descended with the sway of some terrific engine.

figurative.1556 N. Grimald tr. Cicero Thre Bks. Duties i. f. 41^v They feele nothing, but pleasure, and therunto be caried with their holle sweygh [L. omni impetu].1579 G. Fenton tr. F. Guicciardini Hist. Guicciardin xiv. 831 So that the whole swaigh or burden of the warre lay vpon the Swizzers.

†b. A swinging stroke or blow. Scottish. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > impact > striking > striking in specific manner > [noun] > striking a swinging blow > a swinging stroke or blow

swafea1400

sway1535

wipe?1545

swipe1788

swiper1853

1535 W. Stewart tr. H. Boethius Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) II. 383 This schiphird carle he gaif him sic ane swey [etc.].

c. A turn, veer. Scottish.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > change of direction of movement > [noun]

wentc1374

turning1426

turnagain1545

wrench1549

yaw1597

veer1611

veering1611

version1625

wheelinga1660

sway1818

whiffle1842

twizzle1848

split-turn1932

1818 J. Hogg Brownie of Bodsbeck I. 139 Ye ken the wind very often taks a swee away round to the east i' the night time.

1875 W. McIlwraith Guide Wigtownshire 126 The [flat-bottomed] boats were liable to give a sudden swee.

†3. Force or pressure bearing or inclining its object in one direction or another. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > matter > physics > mechanics > force > [noun] > pressure

sway1565

pressure1660

P1823

mip1961

1565 T. Peend tr. Ovid Pleasant Fable Hermaphroditus & Salmacis B v b Such be the..fits which in the blinded brayne Of wanton women often times with swinging swey doth reigne.

1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. xlix. 105 As long as the sway of euill custome ouerbeareth them.

1601 A. Dent Plaine Mans Path-way to Heauen 329 The sway of the world doth waigh downe all things that can be spoken out of the word of God.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vi. 234 Expert When to advance, or stand, or turn the sway Of Battel.

1757 W. Wilkie Epigoniad iii. 52 Push'd and yielding to superior sway,..the Spartan ranks gave way.

1791 J. Learmont Poems Pastoral 32 Sic is Britain's present state. A sweigh will coup her ony gate.

†4. Inclination or bias in a certain direction; occasionally deviation from a course of action. Obsolete (in later use Scottish).

ΘΚΠ

the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > tendency > [noun]

kinda1200

disposingc1380

disposition1393

aptc1400

hieldc1400

remotiona1425

inclination?a1439

incliningc1450

taste1477

intendment1509

benta1535

swing1538

approclivity1546

aptness1548

swinge1548

drift1549

set1567

addiction1570

disposedness1583

swaya1586

leaning1587

intention1594

inflection1597

inclinableness1608

appetite1626

vogue1626

tendency1628

tendence1632

aptitude1633

gravitation1644

propension1644

biasing1645

conducement1646

flexure1652

propendency1660

tend1663

vergencya1665

pend1674

to have a way of1748

polarity1767

appetency1802

drive1885

overleaning1896

the world > action or operation > inaction > not doing > abstaining or refraining from action > [noun] > avoiding an action or condition > turning aside from a course of action

divagation1560

swaya1586

deviation1603

deflection1605

recess1605

recession1614

exit1615

non-residence1615

exorbitancy1623

exorbitancea1628

exorbitationa1628

aberrancy1646

aberrance1661

variationa1662

departurea1694

resilience1838

a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) iii. xxiii. sig. Xx4 [He] suffred..his imaginations to be raised euen by the sway, which hearing or seing, might giue vnto them.

1601 J. Marston et al. Iacke Drums Entertainm. i. sig. B2 Their very wish..had some sway from dutie.

a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. i. 579 This aduantage, this vile drawing byas, This sway of motion.

a1626 F. Bacon Elements Common Lawes (1630) 11 This rule doth give them a sway to take the law more certainely one way.

1645 J. Milton Tetrachordon 29 Such a peculiar sway of liking, or disliking in the affairs of matrimony.

a1732 T. Boston Memoirs (1776) x. 329 A plain sway to the other side appearing in that committee.

1820 J. Hogg Winter Evening Tales I. 253 It's your mind that I'm sad for; they'll gie't a wrang swee.

5. Prevailing, overpowering, or controlling influence.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > power > influence > [noun]

powerc1300

authorityc1405

voice1433

swaya1510

gravity1534

force1582

bias1587

interest1600

prevalence1612

prevailance1631

pondus1638

prevailancya1649

prevailency1650

influence1652

prevalency1652

weight1710

prevailingness1757

holding1770

mojo1923

clout1958

muscle1965

a1510 G. Douglas King Hart ii. 216 No dar I nocht be no way mak travale, Bot quhair I se my maister get a swey.

a1577 G. Gascoigne Princelie Pleasures Kenelworth sig. A.viij^v, in Whole Wks. (1587) You fishes all, and each thing else, that here haue any sway.

1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. D4 My L. the Duke is here of great sway, & entertained with honourable accompt.

1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 791 The jealousie of Love, powerful of sway In human hearts.

1705 J. Addison Remarks Italy 31 This renders it very suspicious, that the Interests of Particular..Religious Orders..have too great a Sway in their Canonizations.

1762 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Painting II. i. 34 His Countess, who had great sway with him, being notoriously corrupt.

1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vii. 188 The sovereign of this country, acting in harmony with the legislature, must always have a great sway in the affairs of Christendom.

1879 W. H. Dixon Royal Windsor II. ii. 16 The girl had fallen under the sway of nuns and priests.

a. Power of rule or command; sovereign power or authority; dominion, rule.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > rule or government > [noun]

onwaldeOE

wissingc1000

governc1300

shield1338

governaila1382

governancec1384

hierarchy1390

regimenta1393

rulea1393

rulec1405

governationc1410

leadingc1430

governmentc1450

gubernance1455

domination1490

moderation1526

governancy1540

ditiona1552

ruledom1553

rectory1572

sway1586

diocese1596

raj1857

1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. F4^v In causes of sway and gouernement.

1616 B. Jonson Epigrammes xxxv, in Wks. I. 778 A Prince, that rules by'example, more than sway.

1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 24 For who can be secure of private Right, If Sovereign sway may be dissolv'd by might?

1683 W. Temple Mem. in Wks. (1720) I. 458 There were two ruling Burgomasters of Amsterdam..who had the whole Sway of that Town.

1706 M. Prior Ode to Queen xxv France on universal Sway intent.

1836 C. Thirlwall Hist. Greece II. 372 Her sway was exclusively acknowledged by her Peloponnesian allies.

1872 J. Yeats Growth Commerce 181 Western India from Ormuz to Ceylon owned the sway of Portugal.

1875 C. D. E. Fortnum Maiolica ii. 14 There were two periods of Mahommedan sway in Spain.

b. transferred and figurative.

ΚΠ

1609 W. Shakespeare Louers Complaint in Sonnets sig. K3 That horse his mettell from his rider takes Proud of subiection, noble by the swaie.

1644 J. Milton Of Educ. 1 Either by the definite will of God so ruling, or the peculiar sway of nature.

1692 M. Prior Ode Imitation Horace iv The Sun absent, with full sway the Moon Governs the Isles.

1714 R. Fiddes Pract. Disc. (ed. 2) II. 220 The soul..originally govern'd the body with an absolute sway.

1805–6 H. F. Cary tr. Dante Inferno viii. 16 A small bark..under the sole sway Of one that ferried it.

1871 F. T. Palgrave Lyrical Poems 136 In the hearts of men is thy sway.

c. contextually. (a) Means of government. (b) Position of authority or power.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > rule or government > [noun] > means of

sway1655

society > authority > [noun]

doomc1000

strengthOE

obediencea1225

bandon?c1225

mastery?c1225

authority1340

bailliec1380

obeisancea1393

baila1400

mastership?a1425

jurisdictionc1425

masterdomc1475

reformation1523

maistrice1526

swinge1531

potentness1581

obey1584

masterfulnessa1586

prevailance1592

covert1596

magistrality1603

command1608

magistery1642

magisteriality1646

sway1765

tenure1871

1655 J. Howell 4th Vol. Familiar Lett. xlvii. 111 The Sword is the surest sway over all peeple who ought to be cudgel'd rather then cajoll'd to obedience.

1765 O. Goldsmith Ess. xxvi. 233 No more presuming on her sway She learns goodnature every day.

1805–6 H. F. Cary tr. Dante Inferno vii. 84 One nation rises into sway, Another languishes.

1825 W. Scott Talisman xi, in Tales Crusaders III. 253 He had been raised to the ducal sway in the German empire.

7. to bear (†a or the) sway, etc. (also †to carry sway): to rule, govern; to hold the (highest) position in authority or power; to exercise influence, carry weight. Also, †to carry the sway of.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > [verb (intransitive)]

to give (the) law (to)a1225

reignc1325

to rule the roastc1500

to bear (the) rooma1529

to have, bear, carry, strike the stroke1531

to bear (a or the) sway1549

to bear a (also the) rout1550

(to have) swing and sway1552

to rule the rout1570

master1656

carry1662

to lay down the law1762

to rule the roost1769

to carry (also hold) (big) guns1867

society > authority > [verb (transitive)] > have authority over

lordshipc1350

maistriec1400

mastera1425

manc1426

overlordshipc1460

domine1481

to carry the sway of1549

overmastera1557

command1575

swinge1593

monarch1600

dominate1611

dominion1647

dominate1870

society > authority > power > influence > have influence [verb (intransitive)]

weighc1386

to have, bear, carry, strike a (great, etc.) stroke1531

to hold placea1535

to take place1535

to bear (a or the) sway1549

to have weight1565

say1614

to be no small drinka1774

matter1848

to pack a punch (also wallop)a1938

society > authority > power > influence > have influence with [verb (transitive)]

to carry the sway of1549

persuade1618

to go a long (also great, short, etc.) way1624

1549 R. Crowley Voyce Laste Trumpet sig. Cviii Let theim two [sc. knowledge and fear of the Lord] beare al the swea, In thy doynges.

1555 W. Waterman tr. J. Boemus Fardle of Facions ii. vi. 151 Nexte vnto the kinges maiestie, the communaltie bare the swaye.

1567 G. Fenton tr. M. Bandello Certaine Tragicall Disc. i. sig. Aviii Suche as in maney ages before had borne the grertest swaighe in that publike weale.

1570 F. Walsingham in D. Digges Compl. Ambassador (1655) 8 Montmorencie..now carrieth the whole sway of the Court.

1573 G. Harvey Let.-bk. (1884) 3 Wilfulnes wil beare a suai, if it be not bridelid.

1581 R. Mulcaster Positions xxxvii. 150 One prince beareth the sway.

1636 P. Massinger Great Duke of Florence ii. ii. sig. D4^v This is the man that carries The sway, and swinge of the Court.

1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan i. v. 19 As it comes to bear sway in them.

1715 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad I. i. 285 Let Revenge no longer bear the Sway.

1759 W. Robertson Hist. Scotl. vi, in Hist. Wks. (1813) I. 459 Huntly and Bothwell, who bore the chief sway in the kingdom.

1779 Mirror No. 66. ⁋5 He knows..that, in Lady Anne, vanity bears absolute sway.

1845 M. Pattison in Christian Remembrancer Jan. 72 The ages when the Church bore sway over every action of life.

8. Manner of carrying oneself; carriage, deportment. ?Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > behaviour > [noun] > demeanour or bearing

i-bereOE

i-letelOE

lundc1175

semblanta1240

countenancec1290

fare1297

porturec1300

bearinga1325

portc1330

abearc1350

demeaning14..

habit1413

apporta1423

havingsa1425

maintenance?c1436

demeanc1450

maintain?1473

deport1474

maintaining1477

demeanance1486

affair1487

containing1487

behaviour1490

representation1490

haviour?1504

demeanour1509

miena1522

function1578

amenance1590

comportance1590

portance1590

purport1590

manage1593

style1596

dispose1601

deportments1603

comportment1605

garb1605

aira1616

deportment1638

comport1660

tour1702

sway1753

disport1761

maintien1814

tenue1828

portment1833

allure1841

1753 W. Hogarth Anal. Beauty iii. 20 The Antinous's easy sway must submit to the stiff and straight figure of the dancing master.

1796 W. H. Marshall Planting II. 40 The Evergreen Bignonia..will form at a distance a grand figure from the sway they bear.

a1849 J. Keegan Legends & Poems (1907) 263 From time out of mind, this parish has been famous for its dances, and our boys and girls always..brought the sway, both for step and figure, and carriage, too.

a. The action of moving backward and forward or from side to side.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > [noun] > swaying

swimblec1386

swagging1566

rolling1578

swaling1824

swaying1837

sway1846

1846 C. Holtzapffel Turning & Mech. Manip. II. 917 The sway of the blades of jointed shears is prevented, by allowing the moving arm to pass through a loop or guide which may retain it in position.

1867 A. L. Gordon Sea Spray 129 A sway in the crowd—a murmuring hum!

1912 J. Masefield Dauber in Eng. Rev. Oct. 338 The poise [of a ship] At the roll's end, the checking in the sway.

b. Nautical. A rhythmic linear motion of a vessel from side to side (as distinguished from the rotatory motion of a roll).

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > action or motion of vessel > [noun] > from side to side

sway1957

1957 Trans. Inst. Naval Architects 99 121/1 Sway accelerations were actually measured to a good approximation in the form of the displacement of the apparent vertical.

1968 K. J. Rawson & E. C. Tupper Basic Ship Theory xii. 427 Disturbances in the yaw, surge and sway modes will not lead to such an oscillatory motion..when the ship is in a seaway.

1977 Offshore Engineer May 44/3 During these tests, the data acquisition system recorded waves,..sway and yaw of the lay barge, pull and length of mooring cables, and anchor positions.

II. Concrete senses.

†10. ? The pole of a cart. Scottish. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > means of travel > a conveyance > vehicle > cart, carriage, or wagon > parts of cart or carriage > [noun] > shaft(s) or pole

thillc1325

limber1480

sway1535

neap1553

draught-tree1580

wain-beam1589

beam1600

fills1609

spire1609

foreteam?1611

verge1611

shaft1613

rangy1657

pole1683

thrill1688

trill1688

rod1695

range1702

neb1710

sharp1733

tram1766

carriage pole1767

sill1787

tongue1792

nib1808

dissel-boom1822

tongue-tree1829

reach1869

wain-stang1876

1535 W. Stewart tr. H. Boethius Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) III. 561 Fast festnit on ane tre, Out throw the toun tha gart him drawin be, Vpoun ane suey ay swappand vp and doun.

11. A lever, crowbar. dialect.

ΘΚΠ

society > occupation and work > equipment > lever or crowbar > [noun]

lever1297

speke1366

crowa1400

gavelock1497

prisea1500

handspoke1513

porter1538

sway1545

handspike1559

heaver1598

coleweigh1600

handspeek1644

forcer1649

ringer1650

ripping-chisel1659

pinch1685

crow-spike1692

Betty1700

wringer1703

crowbar1748

spike1771

pry1803

jemmy1811

crow-iron1817

dog1825

pinchbar1837

jimmy1848

stick1848

pry bar1872

peiser1873

nail bar1929

cane1930

1545 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1908) VIII. 423 Sweyis, oxin bollis, and other necessaries pertening to the said monitioun.

1547 in Accts. Ld. High Treasurer Scotl. (1911) IX. 88 Thair ten cairttis laidint with..extreis, sweyes, sowmes, ȝokes, oxin bowes and other necessarres for the said artalȝere.

1566 in T. Thomson Coll. Inventories Royal Wardrobe (1815) 170 Item fyve sweis of tymmer Item certane hand spakkis.

1793 Ann. Agric. 21 621 A gentlewoman in the vicinity of Edinburgh..has always been used to Churn..in a plunge Churn, with a swee (a lever applied to the end of the Churn-staff).

1808 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Swey, a long crow for raising stones.

1823 E. Moor Suffolk Words 414 Sway, a balance or lever.

1876 J. C. Atkinson Additions to Gloss. Cleveland Dial. 7 Sway,..a wooden lever.

12. A small pliable twig or rod, esp. one used in thatching (see quot. 1949); a switch. dialect.

ΘΚΠ

the world > plants > part of plant > part of tree or woody plant > [noun] > bough or branch > flexible and slender

rodc1275

wanda1300

wicker?1507

whip1585

switch1616

sway1630

withe1817

society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > wood > wood in specific form > [noun] > stick, twig, or rod

stickOE

wandc1175

rond?c1225

raddling1470

sway1630

halvelings1832

1630 Churchwardens' Accts. St. Peter Mancroft, Norwich in Norfolk Antiquarian Misc. (1883) II. 341 Item paid Thomas Seamer for swaies or wandes..iij. d.

1787 W. Marshall Provincialisms in Rural Econ. Norfolk II. 390 Sways, rods, or switches.

1847 J. O. Halliwell Dict. Archaic & Provinc. Words II Sway..a switch used by thatchers to bind their work... East.

1949 K. S. Woods Rural Crafts Eng. iv. xiii. 203 The light timbers that support the thatch are ‘flues’ laid upward from eaves to ridge like rather thin rafters; ‘sways’ or long laths are laid horizontally across them at frequent intervals.

1966 Punch 10 Aug. (Advt. following p. 216) Hazel rods or ‘sways’ are used in conjunction with iron hooks to fasten the thatch to the roof timbers.

13. A flat iron rod suspended in the chimney, on which pots and kettles are hung. Scottish and northern.

ΘΚΠ

the world > food and drink > food > food manufacture and preparation > equipment for food preparation > cooking vessel or pot > [noun] > bar or chain for hanging

rack1391

reckon1400

hake1402

kilp1425

pot-clip1459

pothangles1468

reckon-crook1469

kettle-hook1485

rax1519

pot hangings1521

pot hangerc1525

pot-crookc1530

pot-hook1530

trammel1537

pot-kilp1542

gallow-balk1583

hale1589

hanger1599

pot-keep1611

pot rack1619

reckon hook1645

ratten crook1665

winter1668

rantle1671

cotterel1674

rantle-tree1685

rannel-balk1781

sway1825

rannel-perch1855

1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl.

1870 J. K. Hunter Life Stud. Char. xli. 257 Willie's lum was one of an old-fashioned wideness, with a rungiltree instead of a swee.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1918; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

swayv.

Brit.

/sweɪ/, U.S.

/sweɪ/

Forms: Middle English sweȝe, Middle English swye, Middle English–1500s sweye, Middle English–1600s (1700s–1800s dialect) swey, (1500s sweie, swaye, 1600s–1800s sweigh, 1700s–1800s Scottish swee), 1500s– sway; 3rd singular 1500s swayth, swaieth, sweath; present participle 1500s Scottish sweand; strong past tense Middle English sweȝe, swey, swe; past tense and participle Middle English sweȝed, sweyed, Middle English swyed, Middle English sweyd, sweyt, 1500s–1600s swaid(e, swayd, swaied, 1600s swai'd, sued (?), 1600s– swayed.

Origin: Perhaps of multiple origins. Perhaps partly a word inherited from Germanic. Perhaps partly a borrowing from early Scandinavian. Probably partly a borrowing from Low German.

Etymology: A merger of two originally distinct words. (1) Middle English sweȝe (14th cent.), conjugated strong and weak, also swye , to go, move (compare Middle English forsueie to go astray), may have been a native word originally of the Old English type *swegan , (3rd person present indicative *swigeþ ), past tense *swæg , parallel to Old English wegan to move, carry, weigh v.¹, (wigeþ), wæg, Middle English weȝe, occasionally wye, past tense weȝe, wei(ȝ), wei(e)de. (Compare also the parallelism of swag and wag, sweight and weight.) Formally, swege might also be < Old Norse sveigja to bend (a bow), swing (a distaff), etc., give way, yield (compare sveigr switch, twig), causative verb < svig-, in svig bend, curve, svigi switch, svigna to give way; but the Middle English and Old Norse verbs do not agree in sense. (2) The modern sway dates only from c1500, and agrees in form and sense with, and appears to be < Low German swâjen to be moved hither and thither by the wind (whence Swedish svaja to swing, Danish svaie to move to and fro, German schwaien, schweien), Dutch zwaaien to swing, wave, walk totteringly, slant, bevel.

I. Senses relating to motion along or down.

†1.

a. intransitive. To go, move. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > move [verb (intransitive)]

stira1000

icchec1175

wag?c1225

movea1325

routa1325

to-wawea1375

removea1400

sway?a1400

trotc1430

ayrec1440

quinch1511

walk1533

twitch1542

shift1595

jee1727

to get around1849

the world > movement > progressive motion > move along [verb (intransitive)]

goeOE

lithec900

nimOE

fare971

shakeOE

strikea1000

gangOE

gengOE

seekc1000

glidea1275

wevec1300

hove1390

drevea1400

sway?a1400

wainc1540

discoursea1547

yede1563

trot1612

to get along1683

locomove1792

locomote1831

?a1400 Morte Arth. 57 [He] Sweys in-to Swaldye wiþ his snelle houndes.

c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1429 Al in a semble sweyed to-geder.

c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness l. 87 Swyerez þat swyftly swyed on blonkez.

c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 151 Þe sayl sweyed on þe see.

c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 72 Now sweȝe me þider swyftly & say me þis arende.

†b. Often with down: To go down, fall (literal and figurative); spec. to fall or sink into a swoon. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > physical sensation > physical sensibility > physical insensibility > unconsciousness > lose consciousness [verb (intransitive)] > faint or swoon

swotherc1000

swowa1250

swoonc1290

sweltc1330

trance1340

to fall on, in swowa1375

swapc1386

sound1393

dwelea1400

swaya1400

faintc1440

owmawt1440

swalmc1440

sweamc1440

syncopize1490

dwalm?a1513

swarf1513

swound1530

cothe1567

sweb1599

to go away1655

to die away1707

go1768

sink1769

sile1790

to pass out1915

to black out1935

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > downward motion > falling > fall [verb (intransitive)] > fall down or from erect position

fallOE

to fall downc1175

torple?c1225

glidec1275

overthrowc1330

downfallc1350

swaya1400

reversea1470

twine1600

to go down1697

a1400–50 Wars Alex. (Dublin) 2057 Þe power owt of perse..Sweyd sleghtly downe slayn of þair blonkes.

?a1400 Morte Arth. 1467 So many sweys in swoghe swounande att ones!

?a1400 Morte Arth. 3676 With þe swynge of þe swerde sweys þe mastys.

c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1796 Sykande ho sweȝe doun & semly hym kyssed.

c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness l. 956 Þe rayn rueled adoun..Of felle flaunkes of fyr..Swe aboute sodamas.

c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 429 Þe soun of oure souerayn þen swey in his ere.

c1415 Crowned King 29 Swythe y swyed in a sweem þat y swet after.

1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid ii. x. 86 Quhar thir towris thou seis doun fall and sweye, And stane fra stane doun bet.

1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. iv. xv. 103 Þe hewmondis of romanis semyt as þai war sweyand doun.

c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 9454 Parys..Sweyt into swym, as he swelt wold.

†c. causative. To cause to go or move; to drive. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > impelling or driving > impel or drive [verb (transitive)]

driveeOE

sendc950

stira1300

enforce1340

swayc1400

compel1447

force1582

impel1611

impulse1611

to set gone?1611

to knock on1642

pulse1666

command1680

c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 236 Styffe stremes..Þat drof hem dryȝlych adoun þe depe to serue, Tyl a swetter ful swyþe hem sweȝed to bonk.

II. Senses relating to a swinging or swaying motion.

a. intransitive. To move or swing first to one side and then to the other, as a flexible or pivoted object: often amplified by phrase, e.g. backwards and forwards, to and fro, from side to side.Not common before the 19th century.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (intransitive)] > sway

wawc888

swang1340

waltera1375

swayve1377

swayc1500

nod1578

weave1596

showd1599

swing1607

swag1608

slinger1767

wintle1786

swale1820

daven1977

c1500 Bk. Mayd Emlyn 334 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. (1866) IV. 94 An halfepeny halter made hym fast, And therin he swayes.

1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde ii. iv. f. 68^v Yet are they [the branches] tossed therewith, and swaye sumwhat from syde to syde.

1797 H. Lee Canterbury Tales I. 375 The lamp swayed with the blast.

1859 Ld. Tennyson Enid in Idylls of King 10 A purple scarf, at either end whereof There swung an apple of the purest gold, Sway'd round about him as he gallop'd up.

1863 M. Oliphant Salem Chapel I. x. 171 That stick over which his tall person swayed with fashionable languor.

1876 L. Stephen Hours in Libr. 2nd Ser. vi. 268 The dreary estuary, where the slow tide sways backwards and forwards.

b. figurative. To vacillate. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > decision > irresolution or vacillation > be irresolute or vacillate [verb (intransitive)]

haltc825

flecchec1300

waverc1315

flickerc1325

wag1387

swervea1400

floghter1521

stacker1526

to be of (occasionally in) many (also divers) minds1530

wave1532

stagger1533

to hang in the wind1536

to waver as, like, with the wind1548

mammer1554

sway1563

dodge1568

erch1584

suspend1585

float1598

swag1608

hoverc1620

hesitate1623

vacillate1623

fluctuate1634

demur1641

balance1656

to be at shall I, shall I (not)1674

to stand shall I, shall I1674

to go shill-I shall-I1700

to stand at shilly-shally1700

to act, to keep (upon), the volanta1734

whiffle1737

dilly-dally1740

to be in (also of, occasionally on) two minds (also in twenty minds, in (also of) several minds, etc.)1751

oscillate1771

shilly-shally1782

dacker1817

librate1822

humdrum1825

swing1833

(to stand or sit) on or upon the fence1848

to back and fill1854

haver1866

wobble1867

shaffle1873

dicker1879

to be on the weigh-scales1886

waffle1894

to think twice1898

to teeter on the brink1902

dither1908

vagulate1918

pern1920

1563 N. Winȝet tr. St. Vincent of Lérins For Antiq. Catholike Fayth xv, in Certain Tractates (1890) II. 35 Thai, sweand and swounand betuix thame twa, determinatis nocht quhat wes specialie erast to be chosin be thame.

1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl. Swee,..To be irresolute.

1871 B. Taylor tr. J. W. von Goethe Faust II. i. i. 5 When the crowd sways, unbelieving.

a. transitive. To cause to move backward and forward or from side to side (cf. sense 2). (See also sense 13)Not common before the 19th century.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (transitive)] > cause to sway

sway1555

showd1599

roll1608

devolve1726

nod1818

1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde iii. iv. f. 107 Swayinge her bodye twyse or thryse too and fro.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 983 As when a field Of Ceres ripe for harvest waving bends Her bearded Grove of ears, which way the wind Swayes them.

1717 M. Prior Alma ii. 215 Have you not seen a Baker's Maid Between two equal Panniers sway'd?

1785 W. Cowper Task vi. 73 The roof,..moveable through all its length As the wind sways it.

1819 P. B. Shelley Julian & Maddalo 276 The ooze and wind Rushed through an open casement, and did sway His hair.

1866 A. Trollope Belton Estate II. i. 20 He swayed himself backwards and forwards in his chair, bewailing his own condition.

1902 R. Bagot Donna Diana xv. 178 When the cool breeze sweeps up from the sea, gently swaying the tops of the cypress-trees.

b. figurative.

ΚΠ

a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) ii. xxix. sig. Gg4 He was swayed withall..as euerie winde of passions puffed him.

1592 W. Wyrley Lord Chandos in True Vse Armorie 29 Some turning fate, Which like wild whirlwind all our dooings sweath.

1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice iv. i. 50 Others..cannot containe their vrine for affection. Maisters of passion swayes it to the moode of what it likes or loathes.

a1650 T. May Old Couple (1658) ii. i. C 2 He has got A great hand over her, and swayes her conscience Which way he list.

1866 G. MacDonald Ann. Quiet Neighb. (1878) xv. 307 I was swayed to and fro by the motions of a spiritual power.

1870 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 388 Dr. Newman..tells us..with the utmost frankness, the persons who..swayed his beliefs hither and thither.

a. intransitive. To bend or move to one side, or downwards, as by excess of weight or pressure; to incline, lean, swerve.In modern quots. only a contextual use of sense 2.

ΘΚΠ

the world > space > relative position > inclination > incline or be oblique [verb (intransitive)] > lean over

hieldc888

leanOE

stoopc1000

clinea1400

incline?c1400

acclinea1425

overheldc1450

paunch1577

sway1577

pend1674

list1929

1577 R. Holinshed Chron. II. 1624/1 The left side of the enimies..was..compelled to sway a good way backe, and giue grounde largely.

1610 J. Boys Wks. (1622) 223 The tree falleth as it groweth..Learne then in growing to sway right.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 (1623) ii. v. 5.

1624 F. Bacon Considerations War with Spain in Wks. (1879) I. 542/1 In these personal respects, the balance sways on our part.

1631 W. Gouge Gods Three Arrowes iii. §48. 273 Aaron and Hur..kept his hands that they could not sway aside one way or other.

1694 Narbrough's Acct. Several Late Voy. 166 Could not get the Ship off, for the Water did Ebb, and the Ship Sued above 3 Foot.

1860 J. Tyndall Glaciers of Alps i. xxvii. 196 The carriage swayed towards the precipitous road side.1881 ‘Rita’ My Lady Coquette xv She sways towards him like a reed.

†b. transferred. To have a certain direction in movement; to move. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > move in a certain direction [verb (intransitive)]

goeOE

wendOE

makeOE

aim?a1400

to make one's waya1425

reflect1547

work1566

to make up1596

path1597

sway1600

tend1648

vergea1661

steer1693

1600 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 2 iv. i. 24 Let vs sway on, and face them in the field.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1623) ii. iv. 30 So swayes she leuell in her husbands heart.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) v. iii. 9 The minde I sway by, and the heart I beare, Shall neuer sagge with doubt, nor shake with feare.

1650 tr. J. A. Comenius Janua Linguarum Reserata §233 Man's estate swaieth (is going downwards) [L. vergit] towards a declining age.

c. To move against in a hostile manner. rare.

ΘΚΠ

society > armed hostility > armed encounter > contending in battle > contend in battle or give battle [verb (intransitive)]

fightc900

to bid, offer, refuse, accept, take (arch.) battle1297

to do battle1297

to give battle1297

strive13..

battle1330

to instore a battle1382

fettlec1400

pugnec1425

toilc1425

to deliver battle1433

conflict?a1475

bargain1487

mellaya1500

liverc1500

to come out1511

field1535

combat1589

to manage arms1590

sway1590

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. viii. sig. V How euer may Thy cursed hand so cruelly haue swayd Against that knight.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. x. 49 Yet oft the Briton kings against them [sc. the Romans] strongly swayd.

1603 R. Knolles Gen. Hist. Turkes 195 A man would haue thought two wrought seas had met together, swaying one against the other.

1871 W. H. Dixon Tower III. xxvi. 284 The Duke had grown too great to live. All passions swayed against him.

a. transitive. To cause to incline or hang down on one side, as from excess of weight; dialect to weigh or press down; also, to cause to swerve.

ΘΚΠ

the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > tendency > tend or incline [verb (transitive)] > tend, lead, or conduce to

forwenda1325

tend1560

sway1570

affect1612

to trench on or upon1622

apta1640

predeterminea1667

to go far to1668

to run into ——1753

orient1952

tilt1976

the world > space > relative position > inclination > incline [verb (transitive)] > place in a sloping position > tilt

sway1570

tilt1594

tip1624

tope1684

cant1711

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > change of direction of movement > change direction of movement of [verb (transitive)] > cause to deviate from course

charec1000

wrencha1200

turnc1275

to turn againc1330

swerve1390

wrya1400

reflectc1425

traverse1438

to turn aside1535

deduce1541

divert1548

to turn off1573

wrig1582

react1599

deflect1615

slent1639

decline1646

deviate1660

to wind off1677

sway1678

warp1814

switch1861

baffle1883

the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > downward motion > causing to come or go down > cause to come or go down [verb (transitive)] > press or force down

downbeara1382

pressc1425

to bear down1440

depress1526

suppress1542

detrude1548

sway1857

to force down1917

1570 G. Buchanan Chamæleon in Vernac. Writings (1892) 45 The said Chamæleon..changeing hew as the quene sweyit ye ballance of hir mynd.

1625 F. Bacon Ess. (new ed.) 29 To keepe an indifferent carriage, betweene both, and to be Secret, without Swaying the Ballance, on either side.

1663 W. Charleton Chorea Gigantum 27 As that no force of wind or tempest..by diminishing the gravity on one side, might incline or sway them to sink down on the other.

1664 H. Power Exper. Philos. ii. 145 The greater weight of water in the pendent Leg [of the Syphon]..sways down that in the shorter, as in a pair of Skales.

1678 S. Butler Hudibras: Third Pt. iii. ii. 172 As Bowls Run true, by being made Of Purpose False, and to be sway'd.

1797 T. Holcroft tr. F. L. Stolberg Trav. II. xliii. 81 The..tower of Pisa..is swayed fifteen feet from the centre.

1846 C. Holtzapffel Turning & Mech. Manip. II. 848 They have learned to avoid swaying down the file at either extreme.

1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. II. xiv. 143 These swayed the dogs from their course.

1857 J. G. Whittier Funeral Tree Sokokis in Poems Argt. The surviving Indians ‘swayed’ or bent down a young tree until its roots were upturned.

absolute.1624 W. Bedell Copies Certaine Lett. v. 84 A little weight is able to sway much, where the beame it self is false.

†b. To strain (the back of a horse): see sway-backed adj., swayed adj. 1. Obsolete. rare.

ΘΚΠ

the world > health and disease > ill health > animal disease or disorder > disorders of horses > cause injury or disease of horse [verb (transitive)] > strain back or shoulder

sway1611

splat1614

sore-back1835

swing1844

1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Esflanquer, to sway in the backe.

1639 T. de Gray Compl. Horseman ii. i. 42 He might wrinch any member, or sway his back.

a. To turn aside, divert (thoughts, feelings, etc.); to cause to swerve from a course of action.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > attention and judgement > inattention > mental wandering > lack of concentration, distraction > distract [verb (transitive)] > from a purpose, etc.

withdraw1340

distractc1380

waive1390

wresta1400

to turn aside1535

avocate1543

detract1548

to turn off1573

take1574

swaya1593

to put out1616

to put off1631

sidetrack1887

to turn off1951

a1593 C. Marlowe Tragicall Hist. Faustus (1616) sig. F Let vs sway [1624 stay] thy thoughts From this attempt.

1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 iii. ii. 130 God forgiue them that so much haue swaide Your maiesties good thoughts away from me.

1673 W. Cave Primitive Christianity ii. vi. 135 No dangers could then sway good men from doing of their duty.

1679 J. Goodman Penitent Pardoned (1713) i. iii. 69 An huge advantage may sway him a little aside.

1822 ‘B. Cornwall’ Ludovico Sforza ii No ill has happened..to sway Your promise from me?

1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People vi. §6. 335 No touch either of love or hate swayed him from his course.

†b. To influence in a specified direction; to induce to do something. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the mind > will > motivation > persuasion > persuade (a person) [verb (transitive)]

leada1225

accoya1375

form1399

persuadec1450

persuadec1487

practise1524

temper1525

work1532

suade1548

perduce1563

to draw on1567

overdraw1603

possess1607

bring1611

sway1625

tickle1677

tamper1687

to touch up1796

to put the comether on someone1818

1625 in S. R. Gardiner Documents Impeachm. Duke of Buckingham (1889) 292 To sweigh the people to accept the King's offers.

1634 T. Herbert Relation Some Yeares Trauaile 63 He answered, his businesse swayed him to another end.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost viii. 635 Least Passion sway Thy Judgement to do aught, which else free Will Would not admit.

1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 357. ¶14 The Part of Eve..is no less..apt to sway the Reader in her Favour.

a1720 W. Sewel Hist. Quakers (1795) II. vii. 83 He so swayed the master that at last he agreed.

1815 W. Wordsworth White Doe of Rylstone vi. 100 Even that thought Raised self-suspicion which was strong, Swaying the brave Man to his wrong.

†c. To give a bias to. Obsolete.

ΚΠ

1593 F. Bacon Let. to Ld. Burghley Apr. I spake simply and only to satisfy my conscience, and not with any advantage, or policy to sway the cause.

†7. intransitive. To incline or be diverted in judgement or opinion; to swerve from a path or line of conduct; to lean (towards a side or party). Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > tendency > tend or incline [verb (intransitive)] > go in a certain direction

incline?a1475

alien?1541

propend1545

sway1556

wing1617

lie1633

look1647

vergea1661

bias1683

preponderate1693

give1840

canalize1927

1556 J. Heywood Spider & Flie xxv. 94 We sweie From the streight lyne of iustice.

1588 W. Lambarde Eirenarcha (new ed.) ii. iv. 166 The common opinion swayeth to the other side.

1594 R. Carew tr. J. Huarte Exam. Mens Wits iii. 24 With which of these opinions the truth swaieth, time serueth not now to discusse.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry V (1623) i. i. 74 He seemes indifferent: Or rather swaying more vpon our part, Then cherishing th' exhibiters against vs.

1667 Guthrie's Christian's Great Interest (ed. 4) 53 This imports a sort of impropriation: for the heart pleading that device, in so far swayeth towards it.

1724 Guthrie's Christian's Great Interest (rev. ed.) Explic. Sc. Words sig. N3^v To sway or swey towards a Thing, is to bend towards it.

a. transitive. To wield as an emblem of sovereignty or authority; esp. in to sway the sceptre, †the sword (also, by extension, †the diadem, †the rule), to bear rule.Cf. Dutch den schepter zwaaien.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > [verb (transitive)]

wieldeOE

bearOE

rulea1393

sway1575

carry1598

1575 G. Gascoigne In Praise Gentlewoman in Weedes 5 Golden Marcus he, that swaide the Romaine sword.

1576 G. Gascoigne Steele Glas sig. D.iij^v You should not trust, lieftenaunts in your rome, And let them sway, the scepter of your charge.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. x. sig. X6^v Madan was young, vnmeet the rule to sway.

a1592 R. Greene Hist. Orlando Furioso (1594) sig. E It fits me not to sway the Diademe.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 (1623) iii. iii. 76 Though Vsurpers sway the rule a while.

1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iii. 404 If I mean to raign David's true heir, and his full Scepter sway .

1751 T. Gray Elegy xii. 7 Hands that the reins of empire might have sway'd.

a1828 H. Neele Lit. Remains (1829) 26 Had Charles I. continued to sway the English sceptre.

b. transferred. To wield (an implement or instrument). poetic.

ΘΚΠ

the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > use (made of things) > use or control > [verb (transitive)]

wind993

wieldOE

aweldc1175

bewieldc1200

demeanc1300

use1340

plya1393

governc1405

exercite1475

apply1531

manage1590

sway1609

manipulate1834

wage1836

1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets cxxviii. sig. H3^v When thou gently swayst, The wiry concord that mine eare confounds.

1810 W. Scott Lady of Lake ii. 54 This harp, which erst Saint Modan swayed.

1882 W. Morris Life & Death of Jason (ed. 8) vi. 239 Erginus now, Great Neptune's son, the brass-bound tiller swayed.

a. To rule, govern, as a sovereign. Chiefly poetic.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > rule or government > rule or govern [verb (transitive)]

steera900

hold971

wieldOE

warda1000

redeOE

wisc1000

i-weldeOE

rightlecheOE

rightOE

raima1325

governc1325

guyc1330

rulea1387

justicec1390

rekea1400

reigna1413

lorda1450

earlc1450

seignoryc1475

over-govern1485

overrulec1488

emperyc1503

gubern?a1505

signorize1594

sway1613

gubernate1623

overlead1720

belord1858

prime minister1906

1613 S. Purchas Pilgrimage vi. viii. 502 The Great Turke swayeth with his Ottoman Scepter..this Kingdome of Tunis, and all Africa, from Bellis de Gomera to the Redde Sea.

a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) i. i. 13 To lay aside the sword Which swaies vsurpingly these seuerall titles.

a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. i. 344 By this hand I sweare That swayes the earth this Climate ouer-lookes.

1637 J. Milton Comus 28 A gentle nymph..That with moist curb sways the smooth Severn stream.

1706 I. Watts Horæ Lyricæ i. 76 Now let the Lord for ever reign, And sway us as he will.

1812 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Cantos I & II ii. xlvi. 84 With a bloody hand He sways a nation, turbulent and bold.

1896 A. Austin England's Darling i. i Buhred hath fled the land By him for two-and-twenty winters swayed.

b. transferred. To have the command or control of; to control, direct.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > control > [verb (transitive)]

wieldeOE

redeOE

temperc1000

wisc1000

yemec1000

aweldc1175

guy13..

rule1340

attemperc1374

stightlea1375

justifya1393

governa1400

moder1414

control1495

moderate1534

rein1557

manage1560

sway1587

to bear (a rein) upon1603

bridle1615

ephorize1647

puppet1840

coact1855

boss1856

run1869

swing1873

1587 A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewness Christian Relig. (1592) xxiv. 366 There must be some pretie speech of Fortune, which swayth the battels. As for God..not one word.

1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream i. i. 193 Teach mee..with what Art, You sway the motion of Demetrius heart.

1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream ii. ii. 115 The will of man is by his reason swai'd .

1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. vi. iii. sig. Nn5 Custom has much a larger Empire than men seem to be aware of, since whole Nations are wholly swai'd by it.

1791 E. Burke Corr. (1844) III. 268 I have been long persuaded, that those in power here, instead of governing their ministers at foreign courts, are entirely swayed by them.

1874 ‘G. Eliot’ College Breakfast Party in Macmillan's Mag. July 170 A sword..With edge so constant-threatening as to sway All greed and lust by terror.

10. intransitive (occasionally to sway it.) To rule; to hold sway. Also figurative.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > rule or government > rule or govern [verb (intransitive)]

wieldOE

rixlec1175

rulea1382

governa1393

to have in (a person's) governinga1400

sway?1566

emperize1601

regularize1623

?1566 J. Phillip Commodye Pacient & Meeke Grissill sig. A.ii Let Grissills Pacience swaye in you.

1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. C3 Yours whilst life swayeth in mine inward parts.

1615 S. Rowlands Melancholie Knight 23 For shee's a Gentlewoman (though I say it) That doth deserue to domineere and sway it.

a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iii. vi. 21 A gentler Heart did neuer sway in Court.

1633 Bp. J. Hall Plaine Explic. Hard Texts ii. 209 Those evill and apostate spirits, which doe now sway so much in the world.

1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost x. 376 There let him still Victor sway, As Battel hath adjudg'd.

1711 in 10th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS (1885) App. v. 114 A tyrant is he..who swayes for his own onely pleasure.

1725 A. Pope tr. Homer Odyssey I. iii. 401 Lawless feasters in thy palace sway.

1853 J. Hunt Spir. Songs, ‘Let all the world rejoice’ ii He rules by sea and land, O'er boundless realms he sways.

1886 A. T. Pierson Crisis of Missions 117 Turkey..still sways over one million square miles.

†11. To have a preponderating weight or influence, prevail. Obsolete.This use combines senses 4, 10.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > power > influence > have influence [verb (intransitive)] > have controlling or prevailing influence

wieldOE

reign1340

sway1586

govern?1592

preside1728

dominate1818

1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. P3 His councell..swaieth not..in our mindes, so much as [it] might haue done with manie others.

1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 586 We may understand..that gold swaied much yea in Church matters, and among church men.

1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 299 Nor did the Kings proclamation sway much this or that way.

1710 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. 14 Nov. (1965) I. 64 If my opinion could sway, nothing should displease you.

1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued I. i. v. §7. 96 To distinguish what motive actually swayed with him upon every particular occasion.

12. transitive. To cause (a person, his actions, conduct, or thoughts) to be directed one way or another; to have weight or influence with (a person) in his decisions, etc.

ΘΚΠ

society > authority > power > influence > have influence with [verb (transitive)] > exert influence upon

weighc1571

sway1593

subject1605

to have its end(s) upon1638

influence1658

ponderate1670

operate1674

to touch up1791

protocol1832

rig1908

1593 G. Harvey Pierces Supererogation 12 Had not affection otherwhiles swinged their reason, where reason should haue swayed their affection.

1607 B. Jonson Volpone iv. vi. sig. L^v Lady P. You shall sway mee.

a1674 Earl of Clarendon Brief View Leviathan (1676) 108 Inclinations which sway them as much as other men.

1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 29 Thus long have I, by native mercy sway'd, My wrongs dissembl'd.

1743 J. Bulkeley & J. Cummins Voy. to South-seas 31 Believing we can sway most of the Seamen on Shore.

1762 O. Goldsmith Citizen of World I. 247 Sway'd in their opinions, by men who..are incompetent judges.

1819 W. Scott Bride of Lammermoor vi, in Tales of my Landlord 3rd Ser. III. 81 The honour of an ancient family, the urgent advice of my best friends, have been in vain used to sway my resolution.

1852 C. M. Yonge Cameos xvi, in Monthly Packet July 8 Bribery and every atrocious influence swayed the elections.

1870 F. M. Müller Sci. Relig. (1873) 292 The authority of their names continues to sway the public at large.

1892 Speaker 3 Sept. 279/1 The jury..was swayed by the customary ethical code in these matters.

13. To swing (a weapon or implement) about; dialect to swing (something) to and fro, or from one place to another. Also intransitive to swing.

ΘΚΠ

the world > movement > motion in specific manner > move in specific manner [verb (transitive)] > flourish or brandish

shakec1000

stirc1275

wagc1300

brandisha1340

flourishc1384

swinga1400

swinglec1450

ruffle?1562

sweak1567

vambrash1577

sway1590

swinge1605

to fetch about1609

wave1609

wheel1617

evibrate1654

the world > movement > transference > [verb (transitive)] > convey or transport > by swinging or suspending

sway1815

swing1856

the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (transitive)] > swing > swing on (gates)

sway1818

the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (intransitive)] > swing > swing on gates

sway1894

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. xi. sig. L4^v When heauy hammers on the wedg are swaid.

1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene iii. i. 66 She..Here, there, and every where, about her swayd Her wrathfull steele.

1815 W. Scott Guy Mannering III. vii. 129 Meg..lifted him into the vault ‘as easily,’ said he, ‘as I could sway a Kitchen's atlas’.

1818 S. E. Ferrier Marriage II. ix. 99 Do I look like as if I was capable of hindering boys from sweein' gates..?

1822 J. Hogg Three Perils of Man I. iv. 60 Bairns, swee that bouking o' claes aff the fire.

1823 W. Scott Quentin Durward II. xi. 249 He..caught hold of one of the chains..and..swayed himself out of the water.

1894 P. H. Hunter James Inwick xiv. 170 Ye've been sweein on the yett for a gey while.

14.

a. Nautical (usually with up). To hoist, raise (esp. a yard or topmast).

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > directing or managing a ship > use of sails, spars, or rigging > carry specific amount of sail [verb (transitive)] > set or spread (sails) > raise (sail or yard) > raise a yard or topmast

sway1743

1743 J. Bulkeley & J. Cummins Voy. to South-seas 15 He immediately gave Orders to sway the Fore-yard up.

1768 J. Byron Narr. Patagonia 15 He was going forward to get the fore-yard swayed up.

1834 F. Marryat Jacob Faithful I. xi. 196 Forward there, Jacob, and sway up the mast.

1883 Man. Seamanship for Boys' Training Ships Royal Navy 61 A spanker is fitted with an outhaul and brails, the gaff being kept always swayed up in place.

b. absol.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > directing or managing a ship > use of sails, spars, or rigging > support (an amount of) sail [verb (intransitive)] > spread (more) sail > raise sail or yards

to hoise sail1490

sway1836

1836 F. Marryat Mr. Midshipman Easy I. xii. 193 How long will it be, sir, before you are ready to sway away?

1840 R. H. Dana Two Years before Mast xvii. 152 We got a whip up on the main-yard, and hooking it to a strap round her body, swayed away.

1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. Sway, or Sway away, to hoist simultaneously; particularly applied to the lower yards and top~masts, and topgallant-masts and yards. To sway away on all top-ropes, to go great lengths (colloquially).

†c. To weigh (anchor). Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

society > travel > travel by water > berthing, mooring, or anchoring > berth, moor, or anchor (a ship) [verb (transitive)] > anchor (a ship) > loose (ship) from anchor > weigh (anchor)

weigh?a1400

loosec1440

rear?c1475

levy1648

sway1790

1790 Coll. Voy. round World IV. v. 1405 The gale having subsided, they swayed the anchor.

This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1918; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	sway
释义	swayn. Brit. /sweɪ/, U.S. /sweɪ/ Forms: Middle English sweighe, Middle English, 1700s sweigh, Middle English–1500s (1800s dialect) swey, Middle English swegh, sweyh, sweyȝ, swyȝe, Middle English–1500s sweygh, 1500s swaie, swaye, swaigh(e, swea, suey, suai, 1700s–1800s dialect swee, swye, 1500s– sway. Etymology: In branch I < sway v.; with sense 1 compare East Frisian swei movement in a curve. In branch II partly of different origin; for sense 12 compare Old Norse sveigr (Swedish sveg, Norwegian sveig) switch, twig. I. The action of sway v. †1. The motion of a rotating or revolving body. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in specific manner > revolution or rotation > [noun] swayc1374 turning1390 overwhelming?a1439 circumvolution1447 winding1530 conversion1541 rotationa1550 revolution1566 gyring?1578 revolve1598 circulation1605 gyration1615 evolution1654 sweep1679 gyrating1837 revolving1867 c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (Cambr.) i. met. v. 13 O Thow..which..tornest the heuene with a Rauessyng sweyh [v.r. sweighe]. c1374 G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. ii. pr. i. 22 The swyftnesse and the sweyȝ [v.r. sweyes] of hir [sc. Fortune's] turnynge wheel. c1386 G. Chaucer Man of Law's Tale 198 O firste moeuyng crueel firmament, With thy diurnal sweigh that crowdest ay And hurlest al from Est til Occident. 1412–20 J. Lydgate tr. Hist. Troy ii. 2024 As Fortune..List on hir whele make a man ascende,..And with a swyȝe þrow hym to meschaunce. 1426 J. Lydgate tr. G. de Guileville Pilgrimage Life Man 12234 iiij spookys..Set vp-on an Extre large, Of the sweygh to bere the charge. 1605 J. Sylvester tr. G. de S. Du Bartas Deuine Weekes & Wks. ii. i. 376 To know heau'ns course, & how heau'ns constant swaies, The yeere in months, the months deuvide in daies. 1610 Histrio-mastix i. 227 Turne a huge wheele: contrary to the sway Place me a flye uppon't. a1616 W. Shakespeare Julius Caesar (1623) i. iii. 3 Are not you mou'd, when all the sway of Earth Shakes, like a thing vnfirme? View more context for this quotation 2. a. The sweeping or swinging motion of a heavy body, a storm, etc.; the impetus or momentum of a body, etc. in motion. Obsolete or dialect. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > [noun] > force of movement coursec1330 swough1338 swayc1374 birra1382 feezec1405 impetc1440 radeur1477 ravina1500 sweight1513 bensela1522 swinge1583 impetus1656 motive power1702 impulse1715 momentum1740 impulsion1795 send1890 c1374 G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde ii. 1383 Whan þat þe sturdy ok..Receyued hath þe happy fallyng strok The grete sweigh doth it to come al at onys. ?c1550 tr. P. Vergil Three Bks. Eng. Hist. (1844) 16 The bridge..being broken with the swey of people that thronged over the same. 1568 V. Skinner tr. R. González de Montes Discouery Inquisition of Spayne f. 24^v That he may fall downe with a sway. 1577 B. Googe tr. C. Heresbach Foure Bks. Husbandry iv. f. 188 Great Maules and Beetles, which the more angerly the Beare shoueth aside, with the greater sway they come vpon his head againe. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. x. sig. X6 Vntill a nation straung,..With their importune sway, This land inuaded with like violence. 1645 J. Ussher Body of Divin. (1647) 74 In a field there are many battels,..yet all turn head with one sway at once. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vi. 251 With huge two-handed sway Brandisht aloft the horrid edge came down. View more context for this quotation 1700 J. Dryden tr. Ovid Ceyx & Alcyone in Fables 367 The Hero tenth advanc'd before the rest, Sweeps all before him with impetuous Sway. 1757 T. Gray Ode II ii. ii, in Odes 17 Regardless of the sweeping Whirlwind's sway. 1802 C. James New Mil. Dict. Sway, the swing or sweep of a weapon. 1816 P. B. Shelley Alastor 27 Seized by the sway of the ascending stream. 1825 W. Scott Talisman xiv, in Tales Crusaders IV. 306 The glittering broadsword..descended with the sway of some terrific engine. figurative.1556 N. Grimald tr. Cicero Thre Bks. Duties i. f. 41^v They feele nothing, but pleasure, and therunto be caried with their holle sweygh [L. omni impetu].1579 G. Fenton tr. F. Guicciardini Hist. Guicciardin xiv. 831 So that the whole swaigh or burden of the warre lay vpon the Swizzers. †b. A swinging stroke or blow. Scottish. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > impact > striking > striking in specific manner > [noun] > striking a swinging blow > a swinging stroke or blow swafea1400 sway1535 wipe?1545 swipe1788 swiper1853 1535 W. Stewart tr. H. Boethius Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) II. 383 This schiphird carle he gaif him sic ane swey [etc.]. c. A turn, veer. Scottish. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > change of direction of movement > [noun] wentc1374 turning1426 turnagain1545 wrench1549 yaw1597 veer1611 veering1611 version1625 wheelinga1660 sway1818 whiffle1842 twizzle1848 split-turn1932 1818 J. Hogg Brownie of Bodsbeck I. 139 Ye ken the wind very often taks a swee away round to the east i' the night time. 1875 W. McIlwraith Guide Wigtownshire 126 The [flat-bottomed] boats were liable to give a sudden swee. †3. Force or pressure bearing or inclining its object in one direction or another. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > matter > physics > mechanics > force > [noun] > pressure sway1565 pressure1660 P1823 mip1961 1565 T. Peend tr. Ovid Pleasant Fable Hermaphroditus & Salmacis B v b Such be the..fits which in the blinded brayne Of wanton women often times with swinging swey doth reigne. 1597 R. Hooker Of Lawes Eccl. Politie v. xlix. 105 As long as the sway of euill custome ouerbeareth them. 1601 A. Dent Plaine Mans Path-way to Heauen 329 The sway of the world doth waigh downe all things that can be spoken out of the word of God. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost vi. 234 Expert When to advance, or stand, or turn the sway Of Battel. View more context for this quotation 1757 W. Wilkie Epigoniad iii. 52 Push'd and yielding to superior sway,..the Spartan ranks gave way. 1791 J. Learmont Poems Pastoral 32 Sic is Britain's present state. A sweigh will coup her ony gate. †4. Inclination or bias in a certain direction; occasionally deviation from a course of action. Obsolete (in later use Scottish). ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > tendency > [noun] kinda1200 disposingc1380 disposition1393 aptc1400 hieldc1400 remotiona1425 inclination?a1439 incliningc1450 taste1477 intendment1509 benta1535 swing1538 approclivity1546 aptness1548 swinge1548 drift1549 set1567 addiction1570 disposedness1583 swaya1586 leaning1587 intention1594 inflection1597 inclinableness1608 appetite1626 vogue1626 tendency1628 tendence1632 aptitude1633 gravitation1644 propension1644 biasing1645 conducement1646 flexure1652 propendency1660 tend1663 vergencya1665 pend1674 to have a way of1748 polarity1767 appetency1802 drive1885 overleaning1896 the world > action or operation > inaction > not doing > abstaining or refraining from action > [noun] > avoiding an action or condition > turning aside from a course of action divagation1560 swaya1586 deviation1603 deflection1605 recess1605 recession1614 exit1615 non-residence1615 exorbitancy1623 exorbitancea1628 exorbitationa1628 aberrancy1646 aberrance1661 variationa1662 departurea1694 resilience1838 a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) iii. xxiii. sig. Xx4 [He] suffred..his imaginations to be raised euen by the sway, which hearing or seing, might giue vnto them. 1601 J. Marston et al. Iacke Drums Entertainm. i. sig. B2 Their very wish..had some sway from dutie. a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. i. 579 This aduantage, this vile drawing byas, This sway of motion. View more context for this quotation a1626 F. Bacon Elements Common Lawes (1630) 11 This rule doth give them a sway to take the law more certainely one way. 1645 J. Milton Tetrachordon 29 Such a peculiar sway of liking, or disliking in the affairs of matrimony. a1732 T. Boston Memoirs (1776) x. 329 A plain sway to the other side appearing in that committee. 1820 J. Hogg Winter Evening Tales I. 253 It's your mind that I'm sad for; they'll gie't a wrang swee. 5. Prevailing, overpowering, or controlling influence. ΘΚΠ society > authority > power > influence > [noun] powerc1300 authorityc1405 voice1433 swaya1510 gravity1534 force1582 bias1587 interest1600 prevalence1612 prevailance1631 pondus1638 prevailancya1649 prevailency1650 influence1652 prevalency1652 weight1710 prevailingness1757 holding1770 mojo1923 clout1958 muscle1965 a1510 G. Douglas King Hart ii. 216 No dar I nocht be no way mak travale, Bot quhair I se my maister get a swey. a1577 G. Gascoigne Princelie Pleasures Kenelworth sig. A.viij^v, in Whole Wks. (1587) You fishes all, and each thing else, that here haue any sway. 1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. D4 My L. the Duke is here of great sway, & entertained with honourable accompt. 1671 J. Milton Samson Agonistes 791 The jealousie of Love, powerful of sway In human hearts. View more context for this quotation 1705 J. Addison Remarks Italy 31 This renders it very suspicious, that the Interests of Particular..Religious Orders..have too great a Sway in their Canonizations. 1762 H. Walpole Vertue's Anecd. Painting II. i. 34 His Countess, who had great sway with him, being notoriously corrupt. 1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. vii. 188 The sovereign of this country, acting in harmony with the legislature, must always have a great sway in the affairs of Christendom. 1879 W. H. Dixon Royal Windsor II. ii. 16 The girl had fallen under the sway of nuns and priests. 6. a. Power of rule or command; sovereign power or authority; dominion, rule. ΘΚΠ society > authority > rule or government > [noun] onwaldeOE wissingc1000 governc1300 shield1338 governaila1382 governancec1384 hierarchy1390 regimenta1393 rulea1393 rulec1405 governationc1410 leadingc1430 governmentc1450 gubernance1455 domination1490 moderation1526 governancy1540 ditiona1552 ruledom1553 rectory1572 sway1586 diocese1596 raj1857 1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. F4^v In causes of sway and gouernement. 1616 B. Jonson Epigrammes xxxv, in Wks. I. 778 A Prince, that rules by'example, more than sway. 1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 24 For who can be secure of private Right, If Sovereign sway may be dissolv'd by might? 1683 W. Temple Mem. in Wks. (1720) I. 458 There were two ruling Burgomasters of Amsterdam..who had the whole Sway of that Town. 1706 M. Prior Ode to Queen xxv France on universal Sway intent. 1836 C. Thirlwall Hist. Greece II. 372 Her sway was exclusively acknowledged by her Peloponnesian allies. 1872 J. Yeats Growth Commerce 181 Western India from Ormuz to Ceylon owned the sway of Portugal. 1875 C. D. E. Fortnum Maiolica ii. 14 There were two periods of Mahommedan sway in Spain. b. transferred and figurative. ΚΠ 1609 W. Shakespeare Louers Complaint in Sonnets sig. K3 That horse his mettell from his rider takes Proud of subiection, noble by the swaie. 1644 J. Milton Of Educ. 1 Either by the definite will of God so ruling, or the peculiar sway of nature. 1692 M. Prior Ode Imitation Horace iv The Sun absent, with full sway the Moon Governs the Isles. 1714 R. Fiddes Pract. Disc. (ed. 2) II. 220 The soul..originally govern'd the body with an absolute sway. 1805–6 H. F. Cary tr. Dante Inferno viii. 16 A small bark..under the sole sway Of one that ferried it. 1871 F. T. Palgrave Lyrical Poems 136 In the hearts of men is thy sway. c. contextually. (a) Means of government. (b) Position of authority or power. ΘΚΠ society > authority > rule or government > [noun] > means of sway1655 society > authority > [noun] doomc1000 strengthOE obediencea1225 bandon?c1225 mastery?c1225 authority1340 bailliec1380 obeisancea1393 baila1400 mastership?a1425 jurisdictionc1425 masterdomc1475 reformation1523 maistrice1526 swinge1531 potentness1581 obey1584 masterfulnessa1586 prevailance1592 covert1596 magistrality1603 command1608 magistery1642 magisteriality1646 sway1765 tenure1871 1655 J. Howell 4th Vol. Familiar Lett. xlvii. 111 The Sword is the surest sway over all peeple who ought to be cudgel'd rather then cajoll'd to obedience. 1765 O. Goldsmith Ess. xxvi. 233 No more presuming on her sway She learns goodnature every day. 1805–6 H. F. Cary tr. Dante Inferno vii. 84 One nation rises into sway, Another languishes. 1825 W. Scott Talisman xi, in Tales Crusaders III. 253 He had been raised to the ducal sway in the German empire. 7. to bear (†a or the) sway, etc. (also †to carry sway): to rule, govern; to hold the (highest) position in authority or power; to exercise influence, carry weight. Also, †to carry the sway of. ΘΚΠ society > authority > [verb (intransitive)] to give (the) law (to)a1225 reignc1325 to rule the roastc1500 to bear (the) rooma1529 to have, bear, carry, strike the stroke1531 to bear (a or the) sway1549 to bear a (also the) rout1550 (to have) swing and sway1552 to rule the rout1570 master1656 carry1662 to lay down the law1762 to rule the roost1769 to carry (also hold) (big) guns1867 society > authority > [verb (transitive)] > have authority over lordshipc1350 maistriec1400 mastera1425 manc1426 overlordshipc1460 domine1481 to carry the sway of1549 overmastera1557 command1575 swinge1593 monarch1600 dominate1611 dominion1647 dominate1870 society > authority > power > influence > have influence [verb (intransitive)] weighc1386 to have, bear, carry, strike a (great, etc.) stroke1531 to hold placea1535 to take place1535 to bear (a or the) sway1549 to have weight1565 say1614 to be no small drinka1774 matter1848 to pack a punch (also wallop)a1938 society > authority > power > influence > have influence with [verb (transitive)] to carry the sway of1549 persuade1618 to go a long (also great, short, etc.) way1624 1549 R. Crowley Voyce Laste Trumpet sig. Cviii Let theim two [sc. knowledge and fear of the Lord] beare al the swea, In thy doynges. 1555 W. Waterman tr. J. Boemus Fardle of Facions ii. vi. 151 Nexte vnto the kinges maiestie, the communaltie bare the swaye. 1567 G. Fenton tr. M. Bandello Certaine Tragicall Disc. i. sig. Aviii Suche as in maney ages before had borne the grertest swaighe in that publike weale. 1570 F. Walsingham in D. Digges Compl. Ambassador (1655) 8 Montmorencie..now carrieth the whole sway of the Court. 1573 G. Harvey Let.-bk. (1884) 3 Wilfulnes wil beare a suai, if it be not bridelid. 1581 R. Mulcaster Positions xxxvii. 150 One prince beareth the sway. 1636 P. Massinger Great Duke of Florence ii. ii. sig. D4^v This is the man that carries The sway, and swinge of the Court. 1651 T. Hobbes Leviathan i. v. 19 As it comes to bear sway in them. 1715 A. Pope tr. Homer Iliad I. i. 285 Let Revenge no longer bear the Sway. 1759 W. Robertson Hist. Scotl. vi, in Hist. Wks. (1813) I. 459 Huntly and Bothwell, who bore the chief sway in the kingdom. 1779 Mirror No. 66. ⁋5 He knows..that, in Lady Anne, vanity bears absolute sway. 1845 M. Pattison in Christian Remembrancer Jan. 72 The ages when the Church bore sway over every action of life. 8. Manner of carrying oneself; carriage, deportment. ?Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > behaviour > [noun] > demeanour or bearing i-bereOE i-letelOE lundc1175 semblanta1240 countenancec1290 fare1297 porturec1300 bearinga1325 portc1330 abearc1350 demeaning14.. habit1413 apporta1423 havingsa1425 maintenance?c1436 demeanc1450 maintain?1473 deport1474 maintaining1477 demeanance1486 affair1487 containing1487 behaviour1490 representation1490 haviour?1504 demeanour1509 miena1522 function1578 amenance1590 comportance1590 portance1590 purport1590 manage1593 style1596 dispose1601 deportments1603 comportment1605 garb1605 aira1616 deportment1638 comport1660 tour1702 sway1753 disport1761 maintien1814 tenue1828 portment1833 allure1841 1753 W. Hogarth Anal. Beauty iii. 20 The Antinous's easy sway must submit to the stiff and straight figure of the dancing master. 1796 W. H. Marshall Planting II. 40 The Evergreen Bignonia..will form at a distance a grand figure from the sway they bear. a1849 J. Keegan Legends & Poems (1907) 263 From time out of mind, this parish has been famous for its dances, and our boys and girls always..brought the sway, both for step and figure, and carriage, too. 9. a. The action of moving backward and forward or from side to side. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > [noun] > swaying swimblec1386 swagging1566 rolling1578 swaling1824 swaying1837 sway1846 1846 C. Holtzapffel Turning & Mech. Manip. II. 917 The sway of the blades of jointed shears is prevented, by allowing the moving arm to pass through a loop or guide which may retain it in position. 1867 A. L. Gordon Sea Spray 129 A sway in the crowd—a murmuring hum! 1912 J. Masefield Dauber in Eng. Rev. Oct. 338 The poise [of a ship] At the roll's end, the checking in the sway. b. Nautical. A rhythmic linear motion of a vessel from side to side (as distinguished from the rotatory motion of a roll). ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > action or motion of vessel > [noun] > from side to side sway1957 1957 Trans. Inst. Naval Architects 99 121/1 Sway accelerations were actually measured to a good approximation in the form of the displacement of the apparent vertical. 1968 K. J. Rawson & E. C. Tupper Basic Ship Theory xii. 427 Disturbances in the yaw, surge and sway modes will not lead to such an oscillatory motion..when the ship is in a seaway. 1977 Offshore Engineer May 44/3 During these tests, the data acquisition system recorded waves,..sway and yaw of the lay barge, pull and length of mooring cables, and anchor positions. II. Concrete senses. †10. ? The pole of a cart. Scottish. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > travel > means of travel > a conveyance > vehicle > cart, carriage, or wagon > parts of cart or carriage > [noun] > shaft(s) or pole thillc1325 limber1480 sway1535 neap1553 draught-tree1580 wain-beam1589 beam1600 fills1609 spire1609 foreteam?1611 verge1611 shaft1613 rangy1657 pole1683 thrill1688 trill1688 rod1695 range1702 neb1710 sharp1733 tram1766 carriage pole1767 sill1787 tongue1792 nib1808 dissel-boom1822 tongue-tree1829 reach1869 wain-stang1876 1535 W. Stewart tr. H. Boethius Bk. Cron. Scotl. (1858) III. 561 Fast festnit on ane tre, Out throw the toun tha gart him drawin be, Vpoun ane suey ay swappand vp and doun. 11. A lever, crowbar. dialect. ΘΚΠ society > occupation and work > equipment > lever or crowbar > [noun] lever1297 speke1366 crowa1400 gavelock1497 prisea1500 handspoke1513 porter1538 sway1545 handspike1559 heaver1598 coleweigh1600 handspeek1644 forcer1649 ringer1650 ripping-chisel1659 pinch1685 crow-spike1692 Betty1700 wringer1703 crowbar1748 spike1771 pry1803 jemmy1811 crow-iron1817 dog1825 pinchbar1837 jimmy1848 stick1848 pry bar1872 peiser1873 nail bar1929 cane1930 1545 in J. B. Paul Accts. Treasurer Scotl. (1908) VIII. 423 Sweyis, oxin bollis, and other necessaries pertening to the said monitioun. 1547 in Accts. Ld. High Treasurer Scotl. (1911) IX. 88 Thair ten cairttis laidint with..extreis, sweyes, sowmes, ȝokes, oxin bowes and other necessarres for the said artalȝere. 1566 in T. Thomson Coll. Inventories Royal Wardrobe (1815) 170 Item fyve sweis of tymmer Item certane hand spakkis. 1793 Ann. Agric. 21 621 A gentlewoman in the vicinity of Edinburgh..has always been used to Churn..in a plunge Churn, with a swee (a lever applied to the end of the Churn-staff). 1808 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Swey, a long crow for raising stones. 1823 E. Moor Suffolk Words 414 Sway, a balance or lever. 1876 J. C. Atkinson Additions to Gloss. Cleveland Dial. 7 Sway,..a wooden lever. 12. A small pliable twig or rod, esp. one used in thatching (see quot. 1949); a switch. dialect. ΘΚΠ the world > plants > part of plant > part of tree or woody plant > [noun] > bough or branch > flexible and slender rodc1275 wanda1300 wicker?1507 whip1585 switch1616 sway1630 withe1817 society > occupation and work > materials > raw material > wood > wood in specific form > [noun] > stick, twig, or rod stickOE wandc1175 rond?c1225 raddling1470 sway1630 halvelings1832 1630 Churchwardens' Accts. St. Peter Mancroft, Norwich in Norfolk Antiquarian Misc. (1883) II. 341 Item paid Thomas Seamer for swaies or wandes..iij. d. 1787 W. Marshall Provincialisms in Rural Econ. Norfolk II. 390 Sways, rods, or switches. 1847 J. O. Halliwell Dict. Archaic & Provinc. Words II Sway..a switch used by thatchers to bind their work... East. 1949 K. S. Woods Rural Crafts Eng. iv. xiii. 203 The light timbers that support the thatch are ‘flues’ laid upward from eaves to ridge like rather thin rafters; ‘sways’ or long laths are laid horizontally across them at frequent intervals. 1966 Punch 10 Aug. (Advt. following p. 216) Hazel rods or ‘sways’ are used in conjunction with iron hooks to fasten the thatch to the roof timbers. 13. A flat iron rod suspended in the chimney, on which pots and kettles are hung. Scottish and northern. ΘΚΠ the world > food and drink > food > food manufacture and preparation > equipment for food preparation > cooking vessel or pot > [noun] > bar or chain for hanging rack1391 reckon1400 hake1402 kilp1425 pot-clip1459 pothangles1468 reckon-crook1469 kettle-hook1485 rax1519 pot hangings1521 pot hangerc1525 pot-crookc1530 pot-hook1530 trammel1537 pot-kilp1542 gallow-balk1583 hale1589 hanger1599 pot-keep1611 pot rack1619 reckon hook1645 ratten crook1665 winter1668 rantle1671 cotterel1674 rantle-tree1685 rannel-balk1781 sway1825 rannel-perch1855 1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl. 1870 J. K. Hunter Life Stud. Char. xli. 257 Willie's lum was one of an old-fashioned wideness, with a rungiltree instead of a swee. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1918; most recently modified version published online June 2022). swayv. Brit. /sweɪ/, U.S. /sweɪ/ Forms: Middle English sweȝe, Middle English swye, Middle English–1500s sweye, Middle English–1600s (1700s–1800s dialect) swey, (1500s sweie, swaye, 1600s–1800s sweigh, 1700s–1800s Scottish swee), 1500s– sway; 3rd singular 1500s swayth, swaieth, sweath; present participle 1500s Scottish sweand; strong past tense Middle English sweȝe, swey, swe; past tense and participle Middle English sweȝed, sweyed, Middle English swyed, Middle English sweyd, sweyt, 1500s–1600s swaid(e, swayd, swaied, 1600s swai'd, sued (?), 1600s– swayed. Origin: Perhaps of multiple origins. Perhaps partly a word inherited from Germanic. Perhaps partly a borrowing from early Scandinavian. Probably partly a borrowing from Low German. Etymology: A merger of two originally distinct words. (1) Middle English sweȝe (14th cent.), conjugated strong and weak, also swye , to go, move (compare Middle English forsueie to go astray), may have been a native word originally of the Old English type swegan , (3rd person present indicative swigeþ ), past tense swæg , parallel to Old English wegan* to move, carry, weigh v.¹, (wigeþ), wæg, Middle English weȝe, occasionally wye, past tense weȝe, wei(ȝ), wei(e)de. (Compare also the parallelism of swag and wag, sweight and weight.) Formally, swege might also be < Old Norse sveigja to bend (a bow), swing (a distaff), etc., give way, yield (compare sveigr switch, twig), causative verb < svig-, in svig bend, curve, svigi switch, svigna to give way; but the Middle English and Old Norse verbs do not agree in sense. (2) The modern sway dates only from c1500, and agrees in form and sense with, and appears to be < Low German swâjen to be moved hither and thither by the wind (whence Swedish svaja to swing, Danish svaie to move to and fro, German schwaien, schweien), Dutch zwaaien to swing, wave, walk totteringly, slant, bevel. I. Senses relating to motion along or down. †1. a. intransitive. To go, move. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > move [verb (intransitive)] stira1000 icchec1175 wag?c1225 movea1325 routa1325 to-wawea1375 removea1400 sway?a1400 trotc1430 ayrec1440 quinch1511 walk1533 twitch1542 shift1595 jee1727 to get around1849 the world > movement > progressive motion > move along [verb (intransitive)] goeOE lithec900 nimOE fare971 shakeOE strikea1000 gangOE gengOE seekc1000 glidea1275 wevec1300 hove1390 drevea1400 sway?a1400 wainc1540 discoursea1547 yede1563 trot1612 to get along1683 locomove1792 locomote1831 ?a1400 Morte Arth. 57 [He] Sweys in-to Swaldye wiþ his snelle houndes. c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1429 Al in a semble sweyed to-geder. c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness l. 87 Swyerez þat swyftly swyed on blonkez. c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 151 Þe sayl sweyed on þe see. c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 72 Now sweȝe me þider swyftly & say me þis arende. †b. Often with down: To go down, fall (literal and figurative); spec. to fall or sink into a swoon. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > physical sensation > physical sensibility > physical insensibility > unconsciousness > lose consciousness [verb (intransitive)] > faint or swoon swotherc1000 swowa1250 swoonc1290 sweltc1330 trance1340 to fall on, in swowa1375 swapc1386 sound1393 dwelea1400 swaya1400 faintc1440 owmawt1440 swalmc1440 sweamc1440 syncopize1490 dwalm?a1513 swarf1513 swound1530 cothe1567 sweb1599 to go away1655 to die away1707 go1768 sink1769 sile1790 to pass out1915 to black out1935 the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > downward motion > falling > fall [verb (intransitive)] > fall down or from erect position fallOE to fall downc1175 torple?c1225 glidec1275 overthrowc1330 downfallc1350 swaya1400 reversea1470 twine1600 to go down1697 a1400–50 Wars Alex. (Dublin) 2057 Þe power owt of perse..Sweyd sleghtly downe slayn of þair blonkes. ?a1400 Morte Arth. 1467 So many sweys in swoghe swounande att ones! ?a1400 Morte Arth. 3676 With þe swynge of þe swerde sweys þe mastys. c1400 (?c1390) Sir Gawain & Green Knight (1940) l. 1796 Sykande ho sweȝe doun & semly hym kyssed. c1400 (?c1380) Cleanness l. 956 Þe rayn rueled adoun..Of felle flaunkes of fyr..Swe aboute sodamas. c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 429 Þe soun of oure souerayn þen swey in his ere. c1415 Crowned King 29 Swythe y swyed in a sweem þat y swet after. 1513 G. Douglas tr. Virgil Æneid ii. x. 86 Quhar thir towris thou seis doun fall and sweye, And stane fra stane doun bet. 1533 J. Bellenden tr. Livy Hist. Rome (1903) II. iv. xv. 103 Þe hewmondis of romanis semyt as þai war sweyand doun. c1540 (?a1400) Destr. Troy 9454 Parys..Sweyt into swym, as he swelt wold. †c. causative. To cause to go or move; to drive. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > impelling or driving > impel or drive [verb (transitive)] driveeOE sendc950 stira1300 enforce1340 swayc1400 compel1447 force1582 impel1611 impulse1611 to set gone?1611 to knock on1642 pulse1666 command1680 c1400 (?c1380) Patience l. 236 Styffe stremes..Þat drof hem dryȝlych adoun þe depe to serue, Tyl a swetter ful swyþe hem sweȝed to bonk. II. Senses relating to a swinging or swaying motion. 2. a. intransitive. To move or swing first to one side and then to the other, as a flexible or pivoted object: often amplified by phrase, e.g. backwards and forwards, to and fro, from side to side.Not common before the 19th century. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (intransitive)] > sway wawc888 swang1340 waltera1375 swayve1377 swayc1500 nod1578 weave1596 showd1599 swing1607 swag1608 slinger1767 wintle1786 swale1820 daven1977 c1500 Bk. Mayd Emlyn 334 in W. C. Hazlitt Remains Early Pop. Poetry Eng. (1866) IV. 94 An halfepeny halter made hym fast, And therin he swayes. 1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde ii. iv. f. 68^v Yet are they [the branches] tossed therewith, and swaye sumwhat from syde to syde. 1797 H. Lee Canterbury Tales I. 375 The lamp swayed with the blast. 1859 Ld. Tennyson Enid in Idylls of King 10 A purple scarf, at either end whereof There swung an apple of the purest gold, Sway'd round about him as he gallop'd up. 1863 M. Oliphant Salem Chapel I. x. 171 That stick over which his tall person swayed with fashionable languor. 1876 L. Stephen Hours in Libr. 2nd Ser. vi. 268 The dreary estuary, where the slow tide sways backwards and forwards. b. figurative. To vacillate. rare. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > decision > irresolution or vacillation > be irresolute or vacillate [verb (intransitive)] haltc825 flecchec1300 waverc1315 flickerc1325 wag1387 swervea1400 floghter1521 stacker1526 to be of (occasionally in) many (also divers) minds1530 wave1532 stagger1533 to hang in the wind1536 to waver as, like, with the wind1548 mammer1554 sway1563 dodge1568 erch1584 suspend1585 float1598 swag1608 hoverc1620 hesitate1623 vacillate1623 fluctuate1634 demur1641 balance1656 to be at shall I, shall I (not)1674 to stand shall I, shall I1674 to go shill-I shall-I1700 to stand at shilly-shally1700 to act, to keep (upon), the volanta1734 whiffle1737 dilly-dally1740 to be in (also of, occasionally on) two minds (also in twenty minds, in (also of) several minds, etc.)1751 oscillate1771 shilly-shally1782 dacker1817 librate1822 humdrum1825 swing1833 (to stand or sit) on or upon the fence1848 to back and fill1854 haver1866 wobble1867 shaffle1873 dicker1879 to be on the weigh-scales1886 waffle1894 to think twice1898 to teeter on the brink1902 dither1908 vagulate1918 pern1920 1563 N. Winȝet tr. St. Vincent of Lérins For Antiq. Catholike Fayth xv, in Certain Tractates (1890) II. 35 Thai, sweand and swounand betuix thame twa, determinatis nocht quhat wes specialie erast to be chosin be thame. 1825 J. Jamieson Etymol. Dict. Sc. Lang. Suppl. Swee,..To be irresolute. 1871 B. Taylor tr. J. W. von Goethe Faust II. i. i. 5 When the crowd sways, unbelieving. 3. a. transitive. To cause to move backward and forward or from side to side (cf. sense 2). (See also sense 13)Not common before the 19th century. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (transitive)] > cause to sway sway1555 showd1599 roll1608 devolve1726 nod1818 1555 R. Eden tr. Peter Martyr of Angleria Decades of Newe Worlde iii. iv. f. 107 Swayinge her bodye twyse or thryse too and fro. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost iv. 983 As when a field Of Ceres ripe for harvest waving bends Her bearded Grove of ears, which way the wind Swayes them. View more context for this quotation 1717 M. Prior Alma ii. 215 Have you not seen a Baker's Maid Between two equal Panniers sway'd? 1785 W. Cowper Task vi. 73 The roof,..moveable through all its length As the wind sways it. 1819 P. B. Shelley Julian & Maddalo 276 The ooze and wind Rushed through an open casement, and did sway His hair. 1866 A. Trollope Belton Estate II. i. 20 He swayed himself backwards and forwards in his chair, bewailing his own condition. 1902 R. Bagot Donna Diana xv. 178 When the cool breeze sweeps up from the sea, gently swaying the tops of the cypress-trees. b. figurative. ΚΠ a1586 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia (1590) ii. xxix. sig. Gg4 He was swayed withall..as euerie winde of passions puffed him. 1592 W. Wyrley Lord Chandos in True Vse Armorie 29 Some turning fate, Which like wild whirlwind all our dooings sweath. 1600 W. Shakespeare Merchant of Venice iv. i. 50 Others..cannot containe their vrine for affection. Maisters of passion swayes it to the moode of what it likes or loathes. View more context for this quotation a1650 T. May Old Couple (1658) ii. i. C 2 He has got A great hand over her, and swayes her conscience Which way he list. 1866 G. MacDonald Ann. Quiet Neighb. (1878) xv. 307 I was swayed to and fro by the motions of a spiritual power. 1870 Edinb. Rev. Oct. 388 Dr. Newman..tells us..with the utmost frankness, the persons who..swayed his beliefs hither and thither. 4. a. intransitive. To bend or move to one side, or downwards, as by excess of weight or pressure; to incline, lean, swerve.In modern quots. only a contextual use of sense 2. ΘΚΠ the world > space > relative position > inclination > incline or be oblique [verb (intransitive)] > lean over hieldc888 leanOE stoopc1000 clinea1400 incline?c1400 acclinea1425 overheldc1450 paunch1577 sway1577 pend1674 list1929 1577 R. Holinshed Chron. II. 1624/1 The left side of the enimies..was..compelled to sway a good way backe, and giue grounde largely. 1610 J. Boys Wks. (1622) 223 The tree falleth as it groweth..Learne then in growing to sway right. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 (1623) ii. v. 5. 1624 F. Bacon Considerations War with Spain in Wks. (1879) I. 542/1 In these personal respects, the balance sways on our part. 1631 W. Gouge Gods Three Arrowes iii. §48. 273 Aaron and Hur..kept his hands that they could not sway aside one way or other. 1694 Narbrough's Acct. Several Late Voy. 166 Could not get the Ship off, for the Water did Ebb, and the Ship Sued above 3 Foot. 1860 J. Tyndall Glaciers of Alps i. xxvii. 196 The carriage swayed towards the precipitous road side.1881 ‘Rita’ My Lady Coquette xv She sways towards him like a reed. †b. transferred. To have a certain direction in movement; to move. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > move in a certain direction [verb (intransitive)] goeOE wendOE makeOE aim?a1400 to make one's waya1425 reflect1547 work1566 to make up1596 path1597 sway1600 tend1648 vergea1661 steer1693 1600 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 2 iv. i. 24 Let vs sway on, and face them in the field. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Twelfth Night (1623) ii. iv. 30 So swayes she leuell in her husbands heart. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare Macbeth (1623) v. iii. 9 The minde I sway by, and the heart I beare, Shall neuer sagge with doubt, nor shake with feare. View more context for this quotation 1650 tr. J. A. Comenius Janua Linguarum Reserata §233 Man's estate swaieth (is going downwards) [L. vergit] towards a declining age. c. To move against in a hostile manner. rare. ΘΚΠ society > armed hostility > armed encounter > contending in battle > contend in battle or give battle [verb (intransitive)] fightc900 to bid, offer, refuse, accept, take (arch.) battle1297 to do battle1297 to give battle1297 strive13.. battle1330 to instore a battle1382 fettlec1400 pugnec1425 toilc1425 to deliver battle1433 conflict?a1475 bargain1487 mellaya1500 liverc1500 to come out1511 field1535 combat1589 to manage arms1590 sway1590 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. viii. sig. V How euer may Thy cursed hand so cruelly haue swayd Against that knight. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. x. 49 Yet oft the Briton kings against them [sc. the Romans] strongly swayd. 1603 R. Knolles Gen. Hist. Turkes 195 A man would haue thought two wrought seas had met together, swaying one against the other. 1871 W. H. Dixon Tower III. xxvi. 284 The Duke had grown too great to live. All passions swayed against him. 5. a. transitive. To cause to incline or hang down on one side, as from excess of weight; dialect to weigh or press down; also, to cause to swerve. ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > tendency > tend or incline [verb (transitive)] > tend, lead, or conduce to forwenda1325 tend1560 sway1570 affect1612 to trench on or upon1622 apta1640 predeterminea1667 to go far to1668 to run into ——1753 orient1952 tilt1976 the world > space > relative position > inclination > incline [verb (transitive)] > place in a sloping position > tilt sway1570 tilt1594 tip1624 tope1684 cant1711 the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > change of direction of movement > change direction of movement of [verb (transitive)] > cause to deviate from course charec1000 wrencha1200 turnc1275 to turn againc1330 swerve1390 wrya1400 reflectc1425 traverse1438 to turn aside1535 deduce1541 divert1548 to turn off1573 wrig1582 react1599 deflect1615 slent1639 decline1646 deviate1660 to wind off1677 sway1678 warp1814 switch1861 baffle1883 the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > downward motion > causing to come or go down > cause to come or go down [verb (transitive)] > press or force down downbeara1382 pressc1425 to bear down1440 depress1526 suppress1542 detrude1548 sway1857 to force down1917 1570 G. Buchanan Chamæleon in Vernac. Writings (1892) 45 The said Chamæleon..changeing hew as the quene sweyit ye ballance of hir mynd. 1625 F. Bacon Ess. (new ed.) 29 To keepe an indifferent carriage, betweene both, and to be Secret, without Swaying the Ballance, on either side. 1663 W. Charleton Chorea Gigantum 27 As that no force of wind or tempest..by diminishing the gravity on one side, might incline or sway them to sink down on the other. 1664 H. Power Exper. Philos. ii. 145 The greater weight of water in the pendent Leg [of the Syphon]..sways down that in the shorter, as in a pair of Skales. 1678 S. Butler Hudibras: Third Pt. iii. ii. 172 As Bowls Run true, by being made Of Purpose False, and to be sway'd. 1797 T. Holcroft tr. F. L. Stolberg Trav. II. xliii. 81 The..tower of Pisa..is swayed fifteen feet from the centre. 1846 C. Holtzapffel Turning & Mech. Manip. II. 848 They have learned to avoid swaying down the file at either extreme. 1856 E. K. Kane Arctic Explor. II. xiv. 143 These swayed the dogs from their course. 1857 J. G. Whittier Funeral Tree Sokokis in Poems Argt. The surviving Indians ‘swayed’ or bent down a young tree until its roots were upturned. absolute.1624 W. Bedell Copies Certaine Lett. v. 84 A little weight is able to sway much, where the beame it self is false. †b. To strain (the back of a horse): see sway-backed adj., swayed adj. 1. Obsolete. rare. ΘΚΠ the world > health and disease > ill health > animal disease or disorder > disorders of horses > cause injury or disease of horse [verb (transitive)] > strain back or shoulder sway1611 splat1614 sore-back1835 swing1844 1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Esflanquer, to sway in the backe. 1639 T. de Gray Compl. Horseman ii. i. 42 He might wrinch any member, or sway his back. 6. a. To turn aside, divert (thoughts, feelings, etc.); to cause to swerve from a course of action. ΘΚΠ the mind > attention and judgement > inattention > mental wandering > lack of concentration, distraction > distract [verb (transitive)] > from a purpose, etc. withdraw1340 distractc1380 waive1390 wresta1400 to turn aside1535 avocate1543 detract1548 to turn off1573 take1574 swaya1593 to put out1616 to put off1631 sidetrack1887 to turn off1951 a1593 C. Marlowe Tragicall Hist. Faustus (1616) sig. F Let vs sway [1624 stay] thy thoughts From this attempt. 1598 W. Shakespeare Henry IV, Pt. 1 iii. ii. 130 God forgiue them that so much haue swaide Your maiesties good thoughts away from me. View more context for this quotation 1673 W. Cave Primitive Christianity ii. vi. 135 No dangers could then sway good men from doing of their duty. 1679 J. Goodman Penitent Pardoned (1713) i. iii. 69 An huge advantage may sway him a little aside. 1822 ‘B. Cornwall’ Ludovico Sforza ii No ill has happened..to sway Your promise from me? 1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People vi. §6. 335 No touch either of love or hate swayed him from his course. †b. To influence in a specified direction; to induce to do something. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the mind > will > motivation > persuasion > persuade (a person) [verb (transitive)] leada1225 accoya1375 form1399 persuadec1450 persuadec1487 practise1524 temper1525 work1532 suade1548 perduce1563 to draw on1567 overdraw1603 possess1607 bring1611 sway1625 tickle1677 tamper1687 to touch up1796 to put the comether on someone1818 1625 in S. R. Gardiner Documents Impeachm. Duke of Buckingham (1889) 292 To sweigh the people to accept the King's offers. 1634 T. Herbert Relation Some Yeares Trauaile 63 He answered, his businesse swayed him to another end. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost viii. 635 Least Passion sway Thy Judgement to do aught, which else free Will Would not admit. View more context for this quotation 1712 J. Addison Spectator No. 357. ¶14 The Part of Eve..is no less..apt to sway the Reader in her Favour. a1720 W. Sewel Hist. Quakers (1795) II. vii. 83 He so swayed the master that at last he agreed. 1815 W. Wordsworth White Doe of Rylstone vi. 100 Even that thought Raised self-suspicion which was strong, Swaying the brave Man to his wrong. †c. To give a bias to. Obsolete. ΚΠ 1593 F. Bacon Let. to Ld. Burghley Apr. I spake simply and only to satisfy my conscience, and not with any advantage, or policy to sway the cause. †7. intransitive. To incline or be diverted in judgement or opinion; to swerve from a path or line of conduct; to lean (towards a side or party). Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > existence and causation > existence > state or condition > tendency > tend or incline [verb (intransitive)] > go in a certain direction incline?a1475 alien?1541 propend1545 sway1556 wing1617 lie1633 look1647 vergea1661 bias1683 preponderate1693 give1840 canalize1927 1556 J. Heywood Spider & Flie xxv. 94 We sweie From the streight lyne of iustice. 1588 W. Lambarde Eirenarcha (new ed.) ii. iv. 166 The common opinion swayeth to the other side. 1594 R. Carew tr. J. Huarte Exam. Mens Wits iii. 24 With which of these opinions the truth swaieth, time serueth not now to discusse. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry V (1623) i. i. 74 He seemes indifferent: Or rather swaying more vpon our part, Then cherishing th' exhibiters against vs. View more context for this quotation 1667 Guthrie's Christian's Great Interest (ed. 4) 53 This imports a sort of impropriation: for the heart pleading that device, in so far swayeth towards it. 1724 Guthrie's Christian's Great Interest (rev. ed.) Explic. Sc. Words sig. N3^v To sway or swey towards a Thing, is to bend towards it. 8. a. transitive. To wield as an emblem of sovereignty or authority; esp. in to sway the sceptre, †the sword (also, by extension, †the diadem, †the rule), to bear rule.Cf. Dutch den schepter zwaaien. ΘΚΠ society > authority > [verb (transitive)] wieldeOE bearOE rulea1393 sway1575 carry1598 1575 G. Gascoigne In Praise Gentlewoman in Weedes 5 Golden Marcus he, that swaide the Romaine sword. 1576 G. Gascoigne Steele Glas sig. D.iij^v You should not trust, lieftenaunts in your rome, And let them sway, the scepter of your charge. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. x. sig. X6^v Madan was young, vnmeet the rule to sway. a1592 R. Greene Hist. Orlando Furioso (1594) sig. E It fits me not to sway the Diademe. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 (1623) iii. iii. 76 Though Vsurpers sway the rule a while. View more context for this quotation 1671 J. Milton Paradise Regain'd iii. 404 If I mean to raign David's true heir, and his full Scepter sway . View more context for this quotation 1751 T. Gray Elegy xii. 7 Hands that the reins of empire might have sway'd. a1828 H. Neele Lit. Remains (1829) 26 Had Charles I. continued to sway the English sceptre. b. transferred. To wield (an implement or instrument). poetic. ΘΚΠ the world > action or operation > advantage > usefulness > use (made of things) > use or control > [verb (transitive)] wind993 wieldOE aweldc1175 bewieldc1200 demeanc1300 use1340 plya1393 governc1405 exercite1475 apply1531 manage1590 sway1609 manipulate1834 wage1836 1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets cxxviii. sig. H3^v When thou gently swayst, The wiry concord that mine eare confounds. View more context for this quotation 1810 W. Scott Lady of Lake ii. 54 This harp, which erst Saint Modan swayed. 1882 W. Morris Life & Death of Jason (ed. 8) vi. 239 Erginus now, Great Neptune's son, the brass-bound tiller swayed. 9. a. To rule, govern, as a sovereign. Chiefly poetic. ΘΚΠ society > authority > rule or government > rule or govern [verb (transitive)] steera900 hold971 wieldOE warda1000 redeOE wisc1000 i-weldeOE rightlecheOE rightOE raima1325 governc1325 guyc1330 rulea1387 justicec1390 rekea1400 reigna1413 lorda1450 earlc1450 seignoryc1475 over-govern1485 overrulec1488 emperyc1503 gubern?a1505 signorize1594 sway1613 gubernate1623 overlead1720 belord1858 prime minister1906 1613 S. Purchas Pilgrimage vi. viii. 502 The Great Turke swayeth with his Ottoman Scepter..this Kingdome of Tunis, and all Africa, from Bellis de Gomera to the Redde Sea. a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) i. i. 13 To lay aside the sword Which swaies vsurpingly these seuerall titles. View more context for this quotation a1616 W. Shakespeare King John (1623) ii. i. 344 By this hand I sweare That swayes the earth this Climate ouer-lookes. View more context for this quotation 1637 J. Milton Comus 28 A gentle nymph..That with moist curb sways the smooth Severn stream. 1706 I. Watts Horæ Lyricæ i. 76 Now let the Lord for ever reign, And sway us as he will. 1812 Ld. Byron Childe Harold: Cantos I & II ii. xlvi. 84 With a bloody hand He sways a nation, turbulent and bold. 1896 A. Austin England's Darling i. i Buhred hath fled the land By him for two-and-twenty winters swayed. b. transferred. To have the command or control of; to control, direct. ΘΚΠ society > authority > control > [verb (transitive)] wieldeOE redeOE temperc1000 wisc1000 yemec1000 aweldc1175 guy13.. rule1340 attemperc1374 stightlea1375 justifya1393 governa1400 moder1414 control1495 moderate1534 rein1557 manage1560 sway1587 to bear (a rein) upon1603 bridle1615 ephorize1647 puppet1840 coact1855 boss1856 run1869 swing1873 1587 A. Golding tr. P. de Mornay Trewness Christian Relig. (1592) xxiv. 366 There must be some pretie speech of Fortune, which swayth the battels. As for God..not one word. 1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream i. i. 193 Teach mee..with what Art, You sway the motion of Demetrius heart. View more context for this quotation 1600 W. Shakespeare Midsummer Night's Dream ii. ii. 115 The will of man is by his reason swai'd . View more context for this quotation 1665 R. Boyle Occas. Refl. vi. iii. sig. Nn5 Custom has much a larger Empire than men seem to be aware of, since whole Nations are wholly swai'd by it. 1791 E. Burke Corr. (1844) III. 268 I have been long persuaded, that those in power here, instead of governing their ministers at foreign courts, are entirely swayed by them. 1874 ‘G. Eliot’ College Breakfast Party in Macmillan's Mag. July 170 A sword..With edge so constant-threatening as to sway All greed and lust by terror. 10. intransitive (occasionally to sway it.) To rule; to hold sway. Also figurative. ΘΚΠ society > authority > rule or government > rule or govern [verb (intransitive)] wieldOE rixlec1175 rulea1382 governa1393 to have in (a person's) governinga1400 sway?1566 emperize1601 regularize1623 ?1566 J. Phillip Commodye Pacient & Meeke Grissill sig. A.ii Let Grissills Pacience swaye in you. 1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. C3 Yours whilst life swayeth in mine inward parts. 1615 S. Rowlands Melancholie Knight 23 For shee's a Gentlewoman (though I say it) That doth deserue to domineere and sway it. a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) iii. vi. 21 A gentler Heart did neuer sway in Court. View more context for this quotation 1633 Bp. J. Hall Plaine Explic. Hard Texts ii. 209 Those evill and apostate spirits, which doe now sway so much in the world. 1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost x. 376 There let him still Victor sway, As Battel hath adjudg'd. View more context for this quotation 1711 in 10th Rep. Royal Comm. Hist. MSS (1885) App. v. 114 A tyrant is he..who swayes for his own onely pleasure. 1725 A. Pope tr. Homer Odyssey I. iii. 401 Lawless feasters in thy palace sway. 1853 J. Hunt Spir. Songs, ‘Let all the world rejoice’ ii He rules by sea and land, O'er boundless realms he sways. 1886 A. T. Pierson Crisis of Missions 117 Turkey..still sways over one million square miles. †11. To have a preponderating weight or influence, prevail. Obsolete.This use combines senses 4, 10. ΘΚΠ society > authority > power > influence > have influence [verb (intransitive)] > have controlling or prevailing influence wieldOE reign1340 sway1586 govern?1592 preside1728 dominate1818 1586 A. Day Eng. Secretorie i. sig. P3 His councell..swaieth not..in our mindes, so much as [it] might haue done with manie others. 1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 586 We may understand..that gold swaied much yea in Church matters, and among church men. 1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 299 Nor did the Kings proclamation sway much this or that way. 1710 Lady M. W. Montagu Let. 14 Nov. (1965) I. 64 If my opinion could sway, nothing should displease you. 1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued I. i. v. §7. 96 To distinguish what motive actually swayed with him upon every particular occasion. 12. transitive. To cause (a person, his actions, conduct, or thoughts) to be directed one way or another; to have weight or influence with (a person) in his decisions, etc. ΘΚΠ society > authority > power > influence > have influence with [verb (transitive)] > exert influence upon weighc1571 sway1593 subject1605 to have its end(s) upon1638 influence1658 ponderate1670 operate1674 to touch up1791 protocol1832 rig1908 1593 G. Harvey Pierces Supererogation 12 Had not affection otherwhiles swinged their reason, where reason should haue swayed their affection. 1607 B. Jonson Volpone iv. vi. sig. L^v Lady P. You shall sway mee. a1674 Earl of Clarendon Brief View Leviathan (1676) 108 Inclinations which sway them as much as other men. 1681 J. Dryden Absalom & Achitophel 29 Thus long have I, by native mercy sway'd, My wrongs dissembl'd. 1743 J. Bulkeley & J. Cummins Voy. to South-seas 31 Believing we can sway most of the Seamen on Shore. 1762 O. Goldsmith Citizen of World I. 247 Sway'd in their opinions, by men who..are incompetent judges. 1819 W. Scott Bride of Lammermoor vi, in Tales of my Landlord 3rd Ser. III. 81 The honour of an ancient family, the urgent advice of my best friends, have been in vain used to sway my resolution. 1852 C. M. Yonge Cameos xvi, in Monthly Packet July 8 Bribery and every atrocious influence swayed the elections. 1870 F. M. Müller Sci. Relig. (1873) 292 The authority of their names continues to sway the public at large. 1892 Speaker 3 Sept. 279/1 The jury..was swayed by the customary ethical code in these matters. 13. To swing (a weapon or implement) about; dialect to swing (something) to and fro, or from one place to another. Also intransitive to swing. ΘΚΠ the world > movement > motion in specific manner > move in specific manner [verb (transitive)] > flourish or brandish shakec1000 stirc1275 wagc1300 brandisha1340 flourishc1384 swinga1400 swinglec1450 ruffle?1562 sweak1567 vambrash1577 sway1590 swinge1605 to fetch about1609 wave1609 wheel1617 evibrate1654 the world > movement > transference > [verb (transitive)] > convey or transport > by swinging or suspending sway1815 swing1856 the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (transitive)] > swing > swing on (gates) sway1818 the world > movement > motion in specific manner > alternating or reciprocating motion > oscillation > oscillate [verb (intransitive)] > swing > swing on gates sway1894 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene i. xi. sig. L4^v When heauy hammers on the wedg are swaid. 1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene iii. i. 66 She..Here, there, and every where, about her swayd Her wrathfull steele. 1815 W. Scott Guy Mannering III. vii. 129 Meg..lifted him into the vault ‘as easily,’ said he, ‘as I could sway a Kitchen's atlas’. 1818 S. E. Ferrier Marriage II. ix. 99 Do I look like as if I was capable of hindering boys from sweein' gates..? 1822 J. Hogg Three Perils of Man I. iv. 60 Bairns, swee that bouking o' claes aff the fire. 1823 W. Scott Quentin Durward II. xi. 249 He..caught hold of one of the chains..and..swayed himself out of the water. 1894 P. H. Hunter James Inwick xiv. 170 Ye've been sweein on the yett for a gey while. 14. a. Nautical (usually with up). To hoist, raise (esp. a yard or topmast). ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > directing or managing a ship > use of sails, spars, or rigging > carry specific amount of sail [verb (transitive)] > set or spread (sails) > raise (sail or yard) > raise a yard or topmast sway1743 1743 J. Bulkeley & J. Cummins Voy. to South-seas 15 He immediately gave Orders to sway the Fore-yard up. 1768 J. Byron Narr. Patagonia 15 He was going forward to get the fore-yard swayed up. 1834 F. Marryat Jacob Faithful I. xi. 196 Forward there, Jacob, and sway up the mast. 1883 Man. Seamanship for Boys' Training Ships Royal Navy 61 A spanker is fitted with an outhaul and brails, the gaff being kept always swayed up in place. b. absol. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > directing or managing a ship > use of sails, spars, or rigging > support (an amount of) sail [verb (intransitive)] > spread (more) sail > raise sail or yards to hoise sail1490 sway1836 1836 F. Marryat Mr. Midshipman Easy I. xii. 193 How long will it be, sir, before you are ready to sway away? 1840 R. H. Dana Two Years before Mast xvii. 152 We got a whip up on the main-yard, and hooking it to a strap round her body, swayed away. 1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. Sway, or Sway away, to hoist simultaneously; particularly applied to the lower yards and top~masts, and topgallant-masts and yards. To sway away on all top-ropes, to go great lengths (colloquially). †c. To weigh (anchor). Obsolete. ΘΚΠ society > travel > travel by water > berthing, mooring, or anchoring > berth, moor, or anchor (a ship) [verb (transitive)] > anchor (a ship) > loose (ship) from anchor > weigh (anchor) weigh?a1400 loosec1440 rear?c1475 levy1648 sway1790 1790 Coll. Voy. round World IV. v. 1405 The gale having subsided, they swayed the anchor. This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1918; most recently modified version published online June 2022). > see also also refers to : sway-comb. form < n.c1374v.?a1400 see also
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swayn.

swayv.

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