I. swing 1 W3 /swɪŋ/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle swung /swʌŋ/)
[ Language: Old English ; Origin: swingan 'to beat, go quickly' ]
1 . MOVE FROM A FIXED POINT [intransitive and transitive] to make regular movements forwards and backwards or from one side to another while hanging from a particular point, or to make something do this:
Let your arms swing as you walk.
a sign swinging in the wind
He was swinging his bag back and forth.
She swung her legs from side to side.
swing something by something
He marched around, swinging the gun by its handle.
2 . MOVE IN A CURVE [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] to move quickly in a smooth curve in one direction, or to make something do this:
A black car swung into the drive.
Kate swung her legs out of bed.
swing open/shut
The heavy door swung shut.
Swinging her bag over her shoulder, she hurried on.
3 . HIT [intransitive and transitive] to move your arm or something you are holding to try and hit something
swing something at somebody/something
She swung her bag at him.
swing at somebody/something (with something)
Garson swung at the ball and missed.
He started swinging at me with his fists.
4 . CHANGE OPINIONS/EMOTIONS [intransitive and transitive] if emotions or opinions swing, or if something swings them, they change quickly to the opposite of what they were
swing from something to something
His mood could swing from joy to despair.
Do campaign gifts swing votes?
The war had begun to swing in Britain’s favor.
swing to the Right/Left (=in politics)
5 . swing into action to suddenly begin work that needs doing, using a lot of energy and effort:
Politicians have already swung into action.
6 . PLAY [intransitive] to sit on a swing and make it move backwards and forwards by moving your legs
7 . ARRANGE SOMETHING [transitive] spoken to arrange for something to happen, although it takes a lot of effort to do this:
We managed to swing it so that they will travel together.
8 . swing both ways informal someone who swings both ways is ↑ bisexual
9 . swing the lead British English to avoid work by pretending to be ill
⇨ there’s not enough room to swing a cat at ↑ room 1 (5)
swing around/round phrasal verb
to turn around quickly, or to make something do this:
She swung around to face him.
swing something/somebody ↔ around/round
He swung the boat around and headed for the shore.
swing by phrasal verb American English informal
swing by (something) to visit a place or person for a short time:
I’ll swing by the grocery store on my way.
II. swing 2 BrE AmE noun
1 . SEAT WITH ROPES [countable] a seat hanging from ropes or chains, usually used by children to play on by moving it forwards and backwards using their legs:
kids playing on the swings
a porch swing
2 . MOVEMENT [countable] a curved movement made with your arm, leg etc:
He took a swing at (=tried to hit) my head and missed.
the swing of her hips as she walked
3 . CHANGE [countable] a noticeable change in opinions or emotions
swing to/towards/between etc
a big swing towards right-wing ideology
She suffers from mood swings.
4 . SPORTS [singular] the movement you make when you hit the ball in ↑ golf , baseball, or some other sports:
I spent months correcting my swing.
5 . MUSIC [uncountable] a type of dance music played by a big band in the 1930s and 1940s that is similar to ↑ jazz
6 . get into the swing of it/things to become fully involved in an activity:
Once we got into the swing of it, it took no time at all.
7 . be in full swing if an event or process is in full swing, it has reached its highest level of activity:
By midnight, the end-of-course party was in full swing.
8 . go with a swing British English if a party or activity goes with a swing, it is enjoyable and successful:
everything you need to make your party go with a swing
9 . swings and roundabouts British English used to say that two choices have an equal number of gains and losses, so there is little difference between them
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ change noun [uncountable and countable] a situation in which someone or something becomes different, or the act of making something different:
There was a sudden change in the weather.
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We are living in a period of great change.
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He was told to make some slight changes to his essay.
▪ alteration noun [uncountable and countable] a change, especially a small one that happens naturally or gradually, or one that is made in order to improve something:
I noticed a slight alteration in her behaviour.
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They had to make some alterations to their original theory.
▪ reform noun [uncountable and countable] a change made to a system or law in order to improve it:
He called for a reform of our outdated voting system.
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Many people opposed the economic reforms.
▪ shift noun [countable] a change, especially in people’s attitudes or in the way they do things, or in the position of someone or something:
a shift in public opinion about the war
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There has been a noticeable shift in government policy on education.
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There needs to be a major shift away from road transport to rail transport.
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After he died, there was a dramatic shift in the balance of power.
▪ swing a big change, especially in someone’s opinions or moods:
There has been a big swing toward the Democrats (=many more people are supporting them) .
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The drug can cause mood swings.
▪ fluctuation noun [uncountable and countable] a change in something - used when something changes often:
fluctuations in the value of the dollar
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temperature fluctuations
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fluctuations in his mood
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There has been some fluctuation in productivity levels.