Meanings
present singular third person swaddles · participle present swaddling · participle past swaddled · past swaddled
- archaicTo beat; cudgel.
plural swaddles
- Anything used to swaddle with, such as a cloth or band.
They put me in bed in all my swaddles.
1711 June 23 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison; Richard Steele et al.], “TUESDAY, June 13, 1711”, in The Spectator, number 90; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The Spectator; a New Edition, […], volume I, New York, N.Y.: D[aniel] Appleton & Company, 1853, →OCLC1 more example
The baby is awake, trying to escape the swaddle I have imprisoned her in.
2020, Avni Doshi, Burnt Sugar, Hamish Hamilton, page 207
Synonyms & antonyms
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Old Englishswaþul
- Middle Englishswathel
- Middle Englishswathlen“to bind; swaddle”
- Englishswaddle
From Middle English swathlen (“to bind; swaddle”), from Middle English swathel, swethel, from Old English swaþul, swæþel, sweþel, sweoþol (“swaddling cloth”), equivalent to swathe (“to wrap with fabric”) + -le (agent/instrumental suffix), the word then underwent th-stopping (its voiced th became a d). Cognate with Middle Dutch swadel (“swaddling; bandage”), Old High German swedili (“poultice”), Old English sweþian, besweþian (“to wrap; swaddle”).
More words from Middle English, Old English
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic قَمَّطَ
- قَمَّطَ (qammaṭa)to bind a baby
Bulgarian повивам
- повивам (povivam)to bind a baby
Catalan faixar
- faixarto bind a baby
Chinese Mandarin 包裹嬰兒 /包裹婴儿
- 包裹嬰兒 /包裹婴儿 (bāoguǒ yīng'ér)to bind a baby
Danish svøbe
- svøbeto bind a baby
Dutch bakeren, inbakeren
- bakerento bind a baby
- inbakerento bind a baby
- wikkelento bind a baby
- inwikkelento bind a baby
- omzwachtelento bind a baby
Finnish kapaloida
- kapaloidato bind a baby
French emmailloter, langer
- emmailloterto bind a baby
- langerto bind a baby
German wickeln
- wickelnto bind a baby
Greek φασκιώνω
- φασκιώνω (faskióno)to bind a baby
Hungarian bepólyál
- bepólyálto bind a baby
Italian fasciare
- fasciareto bind a baby
Persian قنداق کردن
- قنداق کردن (qondâq kardan)to bind a baby
Portuguese enfaixar
- enfaixarto bind a baby
Romanian înfășa
- înfășato bind a baby
Russian пелена́ть, запелена́ть
- пелена́ть (pelenátʹ)to bind a baby
- запелена́ть (zapelenátʹ)to bind a baby
Spanish fajar
- fajarto bind a baby
Turkish kundaklamak, kundak
- kundaklamakto bind a baby
- kundakcloth or band
Ukrainian сповивати, пеленати
- сповивати (spovyvaty)to bind a baby
- пеленати (pelenaty)to bind a baby
Welsh rhwymynnu, lapio
- rhwymynnuto bind a baby
- lapioto bind a baby
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with swaddle
All rhymes →Cite this entry
swaddle. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/swaddle
“swaddle.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/swaddle. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “swaddle,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/swaddle.
Source: swaddle on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.