(swol′ō) v.t.
1. To cause (food, etc.) to pass from the mouth into the stomach by means of muscular action of the gullet or esophagus.
2. To take in or engulf in a manner suggestive of this; absorb; envelop: often with up.
3. To put up with or endure; submit to, as insults.
4. Colloq. To believe credulously.
5. To refrain from expressing or giving vent to; suppress.
6. To take back; recant: to swallow one's words.
—v.i.
7. To perform the act or the motions of swallowing. See synonyms under ABSORB.
—noun
1. That which is swallowed at once; a small amount; a mouthful.
2. The gullet; throat; gorge.
3. The act of swallowing; appetite; inclination.
4. The channel in a hoisting block for the passage of the rope.
5. An abyss; whirlpool; also, a pit. [OE swelgan swallow]
—swal′·low·er noun

(swol′ō) noun
1. Any of various small, widely distributed passerine birds (family Hirundinidae) with short, broad, depressed bill, long, pointed wings, and forked tail: noted for swiftness of flight and migratory habits, as the common bank swallow (Riparia riparia), the American tree swallow (Iridoprocne bicolor), and the barn swallow (Hirundo erythrogaster). ♦ Collateral adjective: hirundine.
2. A similar bird, as the swift. [OE swealwe]