1. An abnormal protuberance or localized enlargement
   "The patient complained of swelling in her ankle";
   - puffiness, lump
    
2. Something that bulges out or is protuberant or projects from its surroundings
   "A strange swelling appeared on the tree trunk";
   - bulge, bump, hump, gibbosity, gibbousness, jut, prominence, protuberance, protrusion, extrusion, excrescence
    
3. The increase in volume of certain substances when they are heated (often accompanied by release of water)
   "The swelling of the material provided a protective barrier against fire";
   - intumescence, intumescency

1. Increase in size, magnitude, number, or intensity
   "The music swelled to a crescendo"
    
2. Cause to become swollen
   "The water swells the wood"
    
3. Expand abnormally
   "The bellies of the starving children are swelling"; "His ankle swelled up after he twisted it";
   - swell up, intumesce, tumefy, tumesce, puff
    
4. Become filled with pride, arrogance, or anger
   "The mother was swelling with importance when she spoke of her son";
   - puff up
    
5. Come up (as of feelings and thoughts, or other ephemeral things)
   "Smoke swelled from it";
   - well up
    
6. Come up, as of a liquid
   "Tears swell in her eyes";
   - well

Derived forms: swellings

Type of: acquit, act, arise, bear, behave, carry, chemical action, chemical change, chemical process, come up, comport, conduct, deport, develop, do, enlargement, expand, grow, increase, originate, projection, rise, rise up, spring up, surface, symptom, uprise [archaic, literary]

Encyclopedia: Swelling