▪ I. † sweam, n. Obs.
Forms: 3 swem, 5 swayme, sweme, sweem, sqweme, 6 sweame, 7 swaim, sweam.
[f. sweam v. (Cf. swime.)
Sense 2 may have been borrowed from ON. svimi, svimr giddiness, swooning, or the ON. word itself may have been actually taken over, ĭ becoming ē as in native words.]
1. Grief, affliction. to think sweam (impers. with dat.): to be grievous to. to be sweam: to be a pity. So for sweam!
| c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 391 Of paradis hem ðinkeð swem, Of iwel and dead hem stondeð greim. Ibid. 1961 He missed Ioseph and ðhogte swem. c 1430 Lydg. Min. Poems (Percy Soc.) 38 His hert began to melt, For veray sweme of this swemeful tale. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 482/2 Sweem, of mornynge, tristicia, molestia, meror. c 1450 Cov. Myst. xi. 127 That mannys sowle it xulde perysche it wore sweme. c 1460 J. Metham Wks. (1916) 43 Ful grete sqweme for yowre absens I schal haue. Ibid. 62 Alas, for sqweme! c 1491 Chast. Goddes Chyld. 92 The olde enmye the deuyl hath fered me by swemes. ? a 1500 Chester Pl. (E.E.T.S.) xi. 8 And nowe that fitt may I not flee, thinke me never so swem. |
2. A sudden fit of sickness or fainting; a swoon.
| c 1400 Destr. Troy 3895 He swat neuer for þat swynke, ne in swayme felle. c 1415 Crowned King 29 Swythe y swyed in a sweem, þat y swet after. a 1440 Sir Degrev. 1211 (Camb. MS.) Loke at þ{supu} come at þ{supt} tyme Oþer swowne shal I sweme Þe lady shall I se [Thornton MS. And ane of us salle ly in swyme]. 1587 Mirr. Mag., King Jago Lenuoy i, A warning this may be, Against the slothfull sweames of sluggardye. Ibid., Vitellius ii, By blindnesse blunt, a sottishe sweame hee feeles: With ioyes bereft, when death is hard at heeles. 1677 Holyoke Dict., A sweam or swaim, subita ægrotatio. |
Hence † ˈsweamful (5 swem-, sqwem-, swymful) a., grievous, distressing; † ˈsweamfully adv.; † ˈsweamly (swemly) a., distressful.
| a 1400 Leg. Rood (1871) 135 [He] swelteþ heerin a swemly swouh. c 1420 ? Lydg. Assembly of Gods 1223 Then seyde Frewyll & swemfully spake. c 1430 [see sweam n. 1]. c 1460 J. Metham Wks. (1916) 43 At her sqwemfful departyng. c 1460 Play Sacram. 807 Now alle my pepulle wt me ye dresse ffor to goe see that swymfulle syght. 1469 Paston Lett. Suppl. 128 It is gret pety to here the swemefull and petowse compleyntis of the pore tenauntis. |
▪ II. † sweam, v. Obs.
Forms: 3 sweamen, 3–6 sweme.
[OE. *swǽman, found only in the compound áswǽman to be grieved or afflicted. Cf. prec.]
1. trans. To afflict, grieve. Hence ˈswemand ppl. a., afflicting, grievous.
| c 1205 Lay. 16099 He scal alle þa swiken swemen [printed swenien] mid eiȝe. a 1225 Ancr. R. 312 Beo we sorie þet we euer schulden wreððen swuch feder, & sweamen [v.r. sweme] swuchne wardein. Ibid. 398 Non vuel ne schal hermien þe, no þing ne schal sweamen þe. c 1230 Hali Meid. 17 Hwa þat sehe þenne hu þe engles beo isweamed þat seoð hare suster swa fohrfulliche afallet. 13.. E.E. Allit. P. B. 563 Þe swemande sorȝe soȝt to his hert. c 1450 Mankind 868 in Macro Plays 33 Yt swemyth my hert, to thynk how onwysely I hawe wroght. |
2. intr. To grieve, mourn. Also in vbl. n.
| c 1450 Cov. Myst. (Shaks. Soc.) 81 Your swemynge smytyht to myn herte depe. 14.. Promp. Parv. 482/2 Swemyn, molestor, mereo..Swemynge, or mornynge. |
3. pass. and intr. To be overcome with faintness.
| c 1440 York Myst. xl. 40 Þane on his bakke bare he þame by, A crosse vnto Caluery, Þat swettyng was swemyed for swetyng. 1501 Douglas Pal. Hon. iii. xc, I..langit sair for to haue swemit agane. |