swallowing
[swˈɑloɪŋ] /ˈswä-(ˌ)lō How to pronounce swallow (audio)/ (ame, mw) · /ˈswɒl.əʊ/ (bre, ipa) · [swˈɑloɪŋ] /ˈswɑː.loʊ/ (ame, ipa)
swallowing — 名詞
1. a single act of moving food or drink from your mouth down into your stomach by u
吞嚥；一口
吞嚥的動作或一次吞下的量
a single act of moving food or drink from your mouth down into your stomach by using your throat muscles, or the amount that you move in this way
The doctor asked Lien to take a small swallow of water before the examination.
醫生請 Lien 喝一小口水嚥下去，以便進行檢查。
collocation: a swallow of [liquid]
Mira finished the bitter medicine in one single swallow and made a face.
Mira 一口吞下了苦澀的藥，然後皺起眉頭。
After each swallow of hot soup, Gabriel felt warmth spread through his cold body.
每喝下一口熱湯，Gabriel 就感到溫暖在冰冷的身體裡散開。
The toddler took a careful swallow of milk from his favourite blue cup.
那個學步的小孩小心翼翼地喝了一口他最喜歡的藍色杯子裡的牛奶。
文法句型
a swallow + of + noun phrase
in one swallow
2. a small wild bird known for its long narrow wings and forked tail, which flies v
燕子
一種翅膀尖長、尾巴分叉的小鳥
a small wild bird known for its long narrow wings and forked tail, which flies very fast and catches insects while in the air
A swallow landed on the telephone wire outside Olivia's kitchen window.
一隻燕子停在 Olivia 廚房窗外的電話線上。
Every spring, swallows return from their winter migration to build nests under the roof.
每年春天，燕子都會從冬季遷徙地飛回來，在屋簷下築巢。
common pattern: swallows return / migrate
Nila watched a swallow dive and twist through the evening sky catching moths.
Nila 看著一隻燕子在傍晚的天空中俯衝盤旋，捕捉飛蛾。
The children counted seven swallows sitting side by side on the wooden fence.
孩子們數了數，總共有七隻燕子並排停在木柵欄上。
A pair of swallows flew low over the river, skimming the surface for insects.
一對燕子低飛掠過河面，輕輕擦過水面捕捉昆蟲。
- martin
a related bird in the same family, often with a less forked tail
用法筆記
This sense is a different word historically — 'swallow' the bird comes from Old English 'swealwe', while 'swallow' the action comes from 'swelgan'. Do not confuse the two in formal writing.
常見錯誤
swallowing — 動詞
- swallowingpresent simple I / you / we / they
- swallowings3rd person singular
- swallowinging-ing form
- swallowingedpast simple
1. to push food, a drink, or a pill down your throat and into your stomach through
吞嚥；嚥下
將食物或飲料從口中送入胃裡
to push food, a drink, or a pill down your throat and into your stomach through controlled muscle movements
Marta chewed the bread carefully before she swallowed it.
Marta 先把麵包仔細嚼碎，然後才嚥下去。
The doctor told Sumin to swallow the pill with a full glass of water.
醫生告訴 Sumin 要用一整杯水把藥丸吞下去。
pattern: swallow + pill + with water
Felipe swallowed his coffee in a hurry and ran to catch the bus.
Felipe 匆匆吞下咖啡，然後跑去趕公車。
Nila found it hard to swallow the dry toast because her throat was sore.
Nila 發現乾吐司很難吞，因為她的喉嚨很痛。
My throat is so painful that every time I swallow it really hurts.
我的喉嚨很痛，每次吞東西都真的很難受。
文法句型
swallow + noun phrase
swallow + adverb (whole/quickly)
用法筆記
When used intransitively (without an object), the focus is on the physical throat action rather than what is being swallowed.
常見錯誤
2. to move your throat muscles as though you were swallowing, because you feel nerv
吞口水
因緊張或害怕而做出吞嚥動作
to move your throat muscles as though you were swallowing, because you feel nervous, afraid, or need to say something difficult
Asher swallowed hard before stepping onto the stage to give his speech.
Asher 用力吞了吞口水，然後走上台發表演講。
common collocation: swallow hard
Lien swallowed nervously when the teacher called her name in class.
老師點到 Lien 的名字時，她緊張地吞了吞口水。
Darius swallowed several times before he could answer the difficult question.
Darius 吞了好幾次口水，才能回答那個棘手的問題。
The young man swallowed and turned pale as the police officer walked towards him.
那個年輕男子吞了吞口水，臉色蒼白，看著警察朝他走過來。
- gulp
can be used in the same way, e.g. 'He gulped.'
文法句型
swallow + adverb (hard/nervously/once)
用法筆記
This sense is nearly always intransitive — you do not 'swallow' anything real. The action itself communicates nervousness. 'Swallow hard' is the most common fixed expression.
常見錯誤
❌ 'He swallowed his fear and walked in.' — This mixes sense 6 (SUPPRESS) with sense 2 (NERVOUS GULP). Use 'He swallowed hard, then walked in.' for the nervous action.
3. when something large completely covers or takes in something smaller, making it
吞沒；吞噬
巨大的事物將較小者完全覆蓋或吸收
when something large completely covers or takes in something smaller, making it disappear or become part of itself
The thick fog swallowed the entire village, hiding it from view.
濃霧吞沒了整座村莊，讓人什麼都看不見。
Large supermarket chains have swallowed up many small family shops in this area.
大型連鎖超市已經吞併了本地許多小型家庭商店。
pattern: swallow up + [business]
The forest fire quickly swallowed hundreds of acres of ancient woodland.
森林大火迅速吞噬了數百英畝的古老林地。
The waves swallowed the sandcastle that Gabriel had built with his daughter.
海浪吞沒了 Gabriel 和女兒一起堆的沙堡。
An increasing amount of countryside is being swallowed up by expanding towns.
越來越多的鄉村地區正被不斷擴張的城鎮吞沒。
文法句型
be swallowed (up) + by + noun phrase
swallow (up) + noun phrase
用法筆記
The particle 'up' is optional but very common, especially in British English. In the passive voice, 'up' usually stays attached: 'was swallowed up by.'
常見錯誤
4. to consume a major share of something valuable like money, time, or supplies, so
耗盡；花光
大量消耗金錢、時間或資源
to consume a major share of something valuable like money, time, or supplies, so that little remains for other purposes
Amani's medical bills swallowed nearly half of the family's yearly income.
Amani 的醫療帳單花掉了全家人將近一半的年收入。
pattern: [bills/expenses] swallow + [money]
The repairs on the old house swallowed every penny that Felipe had saved.
翻修老屋花光了 Felipe 存下的每一分錢。
Running the air conditioner all summer swallowed a huge amount of electricity.
整個夏天開冷氣耗掉了大量的電。
Taxes have swallowed up nearly half of Marta's annual pay increase.
稅金吞掉了 Marta 近一半的年薪漲幅。
The long commute swallows three hours of Noa's day every single morning.
每天上下班長途通勤花掉了 Noa 三個小時。
- save
opposite intention — keeping resources rather than using them up
文法句型
swallow (up) + noun phrase (money/time/resources)
用法筆記
This sense always carries a negative tone — the thing being swallowed is something valuable that the speaker does not want to lose. Frequently used with 'up' as a phrasal verb.
5. to believe something that is told to you without questioning whether it is reall
輕信；生吞
不加懷疑地相信某件事
to believe something that is told to you without questioning whether it is really true, even though it probably is not
Noa swallowed the salesman's story about the car being in perfect condition.
Noa 全盤相信了業務員說那輛車車況極佳的說詞。
pattern: swallow + [someone's] story
Mira found that excuse very hard to swallow given what everyone else said.
考慮到其他所有人的說法，Mira 覺得那個藉口很難讓人相信。
common idiom: hard to swallow
The journalist refused to swallow the government's official version of events.
那名記者拒絕輕信政府對事件的官方說法。
Sumin swallowed every word her travel guide told her without checking the facts.
Sumin 對導遊說的每一句話都深信不疑，完全沒有查證。
- question
opposite action — to examine rather than accept
- disbelieve
direct opposite
文法句型
swallow + noun phrase (story/excuse/claim)
用法筆記
Almost always used negatively — either to criticise someone who believed a lie ('He swallowed the whole story'), or to say something is unbelievable ('That's hard to swallow'). The phrase 'hook, line, and sinker' is a common intensifier.
常見錯誤
6. to force yourself not to show or express a strong feeling such as anger, pride,
忍住；壓抑
強迫自己不表現出某種情緒
to force yourself not to show or express a strong feeling such as anger, pride, disappointment, or the desire to say something
Olivia swallowed her anger and answered her boss in a calm voice.
Olivia 壓住怒氣，冷靜地回答了老闆。
pattern: swallow + [emotion]
Amani swallowed her pride and asked her former classmate for a job.
Amani 放下自尊，向以前的同學請求給一份工作。
common collocation: swallow one's pride
Gabriel swallowed his disappointment when his colleague got the promotion instead.
Gabriel 壓住失望，因為升職的是他的同事而不是他。
Marta swallowed a sharp reply and simply nodded without saying anything.
Marta 忍住了一句尖銳的反駁，只是點了點頭，什麼也沒說。
文法句型
swallow + noun phrase (pride/anger/disappointment)
用法筆記
The object must be an emotion or a reaction — not a person or a physical thing. Common objects: pride, anger, disappointment, frustration, annoyance, a reply, a remark.
常見錯誤
7. to admit that something you said earlier was wrong and take back your statement,
收回；撤回
承認之前說的話是錯的並收回
to admit that something you said earlier was wrong and take back your statement, especially because new information has proven you were mistaken
Darius had to swallow his words when the new evidence proved him completely wrong.
新的證據證明 Darius 完全錯了，他只好收回自己說過的話。
fixed phrase: swallow one's words
The politician was forced to swallow his earlier claims after the investigation.
調查結果出爐後，那名政治人物被迫收回先前的說法。
The newspaper had to swallow its original story and print a full correction.
那家報社不得不撤回最初的報導，並刊登了更正啟事。
After the court ruling, the company quietly swallowed its statement about being innocent.
法院判決後，那家公司悄悄收回了自己關於無罪的聲明。
文法句型
swallow + possessive pronoun + words/statement
用法筆記
This sense is most often used in the fixed expression 'swallow your words.' The more general use ('swallow a statement/claim') is less common and slightly more formal. It implies an embarrassing admission of being wrong.
常見錯誤
8. to say words so quietly or unclearly that people cannot hear or understand what
咕噥；含糊說
說話聲音太小或不清，讓人聽不懂
to say words so quietly or unclearly that people cannot hear or understand what you said
The shy boy swallowed his words when the teacher asked him to speak up.
老師要那個害羞的男孩大聲一點時，他含糊地嘟噥了幾句。
Lien swallowed an apology so quietly that nobody at the table heard her.
Lien 含糊不清地道了歉，聲音小到同桌的人都沒聽見。
The tired old man swallowed something under his breath as he walked away.
那個疲憊的老人一邊走開，一邊低聲咕噥了幾句。
Felipe swallowed his answer so unclearly that Noa had to ask him to repeat it.
Felipe 的回答含糊不清，Noa 只好請他再說一次。
- enunciate
to speak clearly and distinctly
文法句型
swallow + noun phrase (words/name/apology)
swallow + adverb (indistinctly)
用法筆記
This sense is much less common than the others. It is usually used with 'words' or a specific utterance as the object. The phrasal 'swallow under one's breath' is a common variant.