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Swearing vs Swear - What's the difference?

swearing | swear |

As verbs the difference between swearing and swear

is that swearing is while swear is to take an oath or swear can be to be lazy; rest for a short while during working hours.

As nouns the difference between swearing and swear

is that swearing is the act of swearing, or making an oath while swear is a swearword.

As an adjective swear is

heavy.

swearing

English

Verb

(head)
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-14, author= Sam Leith
    • , volume=189, issue=1, page=37, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= Where the profound meets the profane , passage=Swearing' doesn't just mean what we now understand by "dirty words". It is entwined, in social and linguistic history, with the other sort of '''swearing''': vows and oaths. Consider for a moment the origins of almost any word we have for bad language – "profanity", "curses", "oaths" and "' swearing " itself.}}

    Noun

  • The act of swearing, or making an oath.
  • * (Daniel Defoe)
    • No man is believed a jot the more for all the asseverations, damnings, and swearings he makes.

    Anagrams

    *

    swear

    English

    Etymology 1

    From (etyl) sweren, swerien, from (etyl) through Proto-Indo-European.

    Verb

  • To take an oath.
  • *
  • *:The Bat—they called him the Bat.. He'd never been in stir, the bulls had never mugged him, he didn't run with a mob, he played a lone hand, and fenced his stuff so that even the fence couldn't swear he knew his face.
  • (lb) To use offensive language.
    • Synonyms
    * See also
    Usage notes
    * In sense 1, this is a catenative verb that takes the to infinitive . See
    Synonyms
    * See also
    Derived terms
    * swear by * swear like a trooper * swear on a stack of Bibles * swear out * swear to God * swear word

    Etymology 2

    From the above verb, or from (etyl) sware, from (etyl) swaru, from (etyl) .

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A swearword.

    • Etymology 3

    From (etyl) swer, swar, from (etyl) .

    Alternative forms

    * (l), (l), (l)

    Adjective

    (en-adj)
  • Heavy.
  • Top-heavy; too high.
  • Dull; heavy; lazy; slow; reluctant; unwilling.
  • Niggardly.
  • A lazy time; a short rest during working hours (especially field labour); a siesta.
    • Derived terms
    * (l) * (l) * (l)

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To be lazy; rest for a short while during working hours.

    • Anagrams

    * English irregular verbs English reporting verbs