swing: [OE] Swing goes back ultimately to a prehistoric Germanic base *swinggw-, which denoted ‘violent circulatory movement’. One of its specific applications was to the wielding of a whip, and indeed the English verb swing originally meant ‘flog’ (‘They bind him and swing him and spit on his face’, Blickling Homilies 971). Another Old English sense was ‘rush’, but the main modern meaning ‘oscillate’ did not emerge until as recently as the 16th century. The ancestral notion of ‘flogging’ or ‘beating’ is better preserved in the related swinge [16]. => swinge
swing (v.)
Old English swingan "beat, strike; scourge, flog; to rush, fling oneself" (strong verb, past tense swang, past participle swungen), from Proto-Germanic *swingan (cognates: Old Saxon, Old High German swingan, Old Frisian swinga, German schwingen "to swing, swingle, oscillate"), from PIE *sweng(w)- "to swing, turn, toss" (perhaps Germanic only).
The meaning "move freely back and forth" is first recorded 1540s. Transitive sense "cause to oscillate" is from 1550s. Sense of "bring about, make happen" is from 1934. Sense of "engage in promiscuous sex" is from 1964; earlier, more generally, "enjoy oneself unconventionally" (1957). Related: Swung; swinging. Swing-voter "independent who often determines the outcome of an election" is from 1966.
swing (n.)
Old English swinge "stroke, blow; chastisement," from swing (v.). Meaning "suspended seat on ropes" is from 1680s. Meaning "shift of public opinion" is from 1899. The meaning "variety of big dance-band music with a swinging rhythm" is first recorded 1933, though the sense has been traced back to 1888; its heyday was from mid-30s to mid-40s. Phrase in full swing "in total effect or operation" (1560s) perhaps is from bell-ringing. The backyard or playground swing-set is from 1951.
swing 双语例句
1. There will be a radical swing to the right or the left.
这样将出现极左或极右的情况。
来自柯林斯例句
2. Oil prices continued an upward swing in New York this morning.
今天上午纽约油价继续上扬。
来自柯林斯例句
3. Keep the head of the club the same height throughout the swing.
整个挥杆过程中要使杆头始终保持在同一高度。
来自柯林斯例句
4. The balance continues to swing away from final examinations to continuous assessment.
期末考试渐渐被连续性评估所取代。
来自柯林斯例句
5. There was a sandpit, a seesaw and a swing in the playground.