v. swilled, swill·ing, swills v.tr. 1. a. To drink greedily or grossly: "Unshaven horsemen swill the great wines of the Chateaux" (W.H. Auden). b. To follow the ingestion of (food, for example) with the ingestion of a liquid: swilled down the pretzels with soda. 2. a. To flood with water, as for washing or rinsing: swilled out the glass. b. To swirl (a liquid) around in a container or in one's mouth: swilled the wine in the glass before sniffing. 3. To feed (animals) with swill. v.intr. To drink greedily or to excess. n. 1. A mixture of liquid and solid food, such as table scraps, fed to animals, especially pigs; slop. 2. Liquor or other alcohol of poor quality: I won't drink this swill. 3. A swig or gulp of a drink. [Middle English swilen, to wash out, from Old English swilian; see swel- in the Appendix of Indo-European roots.] swiller n. |
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