swive

Meaning

Verb

• To copulate with (a woman).
• To cut a crop in a sweeping or rambling manner, hence to reap; cut for harvest.

Origin

• From Middle English swiven, from Old English swīfan ("to move, sweep, wend, revolve"), from Proto-Germanic *swībaną ("to wipe, sweep"), from Proto-Indo-European *weyp- ("to twist, wind around, swing, sweep, bend"). Cognate with Old Frisian swīva, swīfa, Old Norse svífa ("to drift, ramble, rove"), Norwegian Nynorsk sviva ("to rotate, wander"). Related to Old English swift ("swift"), Middle English swyvel ("swivel").