swine

noun

ˈswīn 

plural swine

1

: any of various stout-bodied short-legged omnivorous artiodactyl mammals (family Suidae) with a thick bristly skin and a long flexible snout

especially : a domesticated one descended from the wild boar

2

: a contemptible person

Synonyms

• bastard
• beast
• bleeder [British]
• blighter [chiefly British]
• boor
• bounder
• bugger
• buzzard
• cad
• chuff
• churl
• clown
• creep
• cretin
• crud [slang]
• crumb [slang]
• cur
• dirtbag [slang]
• dog
• fink
• heel
• hound
• jerk
• joker
• louse
• lout
• pill
• rat
• rat fink
• reptile
• rotter
• schmuck [slang]
• scum
• scumbag [slang]
• scuzzball [slang]
• skunk
• sleaze
• sleazebag [slang]
• sleazeball [slang]
• slime
• slimeball [slang]
• slob
• snake
• so-and-so
• sod [chiefly British]
• stinkard
• stinker
• toad
• varmint
• vermin

Examples of swine in a Sentence

you really are a swine—you have no sense of decency at all!

Recent Examples on the Web

Blood tests confirm a second person in Missouri caught bird flu without exposure to infected animals, but questions remain After H5N1 was identified in other animals on the farm, five swine were euthanized for testing; two tested negative, and results are still pending for two others. —Jamie Gumbrecht, CNN, 30 Oct. 2024

Ohio State Parks allow hunters to use bows and guns to hunt deer, wild turkey, coyote, feral swine, waterfowl and other species in many of its 75 locations. —Cameron Knight, The Enquirer, 13 Sep. 2024

In November 1977, health officials in Russia reported that a human – not swine – H1N1 influenza strain had been detected in Moscow. —Discover Magazine, 7 Sep. 2024

And for all her hard work raising the massive swine, Ellingson has won a shiny new belt buckle engraved with her achievement. —Cameron Duran, The Mercury News, 3 Aug. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English swīn; akin to Old High German swīn swine, Latin sus — more at sow

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing swine

• African swine fever
• cast/throw pearls before swine
• swine fever
• swine flu
• swine influenza

Kids Definition

swine

noun

ˈswīn 

plural swine

1

: any of a family of stout-bodied short-legged hoofed mammals with a thick bristly skin and a long snout

especially : a domestic animal developed from the European wild boar and raised for meat

2

: a nasty person

Medical Definition

swine

noun

ˈswīn 

: any of various stout-bodied short-legged mammals (family Suidae) with a thick bristly skin and a long mobile snout

especially : a domesticated member of a species (Sus scrofa) that occurs wild in the Old World