swan : Dictionary / Wörterbuch (BEOLINGUS, TU Chemnitz)

English Dictionary: swan	by the DICT Development Group
4 results for swan
From WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006) [wn]:
swan n stately heavy-bodied aquatic bird with very long neck and usually white plumage as adult v to declare or affirm solemnly and formally as true; "Before God I swear I am innocent" Synonym(s): affirm, verify, assert, avow, aver, swan, swear move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment; "The gypsies roamed the woods"; "roving vagabonds"; "the wandering Jew"; "The cattle roam across the prairie"; "the laborers drift from one town to the next"; "They rolled from town to town" Synonym(s): roll, wander, swan, stray, tramp, roam, cast, ramble, rove, range, drift, vagabond sweep majestically; "Airplanes were swanning over the mountains"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) [web1913]:
Swan \Swan\, n. [AS. swan; akin to D. zwaan, OHG. swan, G. schwan, Icel. svanr, Sw. svan, Dan. svane; and perhaps to E. sound something audible.] 1. (Zo[94]l.) Any one of numerous species of large aquatic birds belonging to {Cygnus}, {Olor}, and allied genera of the subfamily {Cygnin[91]}. They have a large and strong beak and a long neck, and are noted for their graceful movements when swimming. Most of the northern species are white. In literature the swan was fabled to sing a melodious song, especially at the time of its death. Note: The European white, or mute, swan ({Cygnus gibbus}), which is most commonly domesticated, bends its neck in an S-shaped curve. The whistling, or trumpeting, swans of the genus {Olor} do not bend the neck in an S-shaped curve, and are noted for their loud and sonorous cry, due to complex convolutions of the windpipe. To this genus belong the European whooper, or whistling swan ({Olor cygnus}), the American whistling swan ({O. Columbianus}), and the trumpeter swan ({O. buccinator}). The Australian black swan ({Chenopis atrata}) is dull black with white on the wings, and has the bill carmine, crossed with a white band. It is a very graceful species and is often domesticated. The South American black-necked swan ({Sthenelides melancorypha}) is a very beautiful and graceful species, entirely white, except the head and neck, which are dark velvety seal-brown. Its bill has a double bright rose-colored knob. 2. Fig.: An appellation for a sweet singer, or a poet noted for grace and melody; as Shakespeare is called the swan of Avon. 3. (Astron.) The constellation Cygnus. {Swan goose} (Zo[94]l.), a bird of India ({Cygnopsis cygnoides}) resembling both the swan and the goose. {Swan shot}, a large size of shot used in fowling.
From U.S. Gazetteer (1990) [gazetteer]:
Swan, IA (city, FIPS 76665) Location: 41.46561 N, 93.30942 W Population (1990): 76 (33 housing units) Area: 1.7 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water) Zip code(s): 50252
From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:
Swan mentioned in the list of unclean birds (Lev. 11:18; Deut. 14:16), is sometimes met with in the Jordan and the Sea of Galilee.