swoon

/swun/

/swun/

Other forms: swooned; swooning; swoons

To swoon is to faint, due to lack of blood to the brain. Illness, fear, stress, and even happiness can cause people to swoon.

Swoon is an old-fashioned way to say "pass out": back in the day, ladies in corsets were always swooning at the slightest stress or smallest nod from a handsome man. Although this word technically means "to faint," today it has more of a positive connotation and isn't used so literally — people say they swoon when they encounter something so wonderful it makes them dizzy with joy. Chocolate cupcakes, the perfect dress, or a stellar home run could make you swoon.

Definitions of swoon

1. verb

   pass out from weakness, physical or emotional distress due to a loss of blood supply to the brain
   synonyms: conk, faint, pass out

   type of:

   black out, pass out, zonk out

   lose consciousness due to a sudden trauma, for example
2. noun

   a spontaneous loss of consciousness caused by insufficient blood to the brain
   synonyms: deliquium, faint, syncope

   type of:

   loss of consciousness

   the occurrence of a loss of the ability to perceive and respond
3. verb

   be overwhelmed with ecstasy, especially when encountering something or someone you admire
   type of:

   rejoice, triumph, wallow

   be ecstatic with joy
4. noun

   a state of elated bliss
   synonyms: ecstasy, rapture, rhapsody

   type of:

   bliss, blissfulness, cloud nine, seventh heaven, walking on air

   a state of extreme happiness