swager

See also: Swager

English

Etymology 1

Recorded in neither Old English nor Middle English. Perhaps a borrowing from Dutch or Low German, but this derivation is rather unlikely due to the presence of the words like sweyr (“mother-in-law”) and swier (“father-in-law”) in some East Midlands dialects, which are derived from attested Old English and Middle English words sweger and sweor, respectively. Ultimately derived from Proto-Germanic *swēgraz (“husband's brother”), from Proto-Indo-European *swéḱuros (“husband's father”).

Pronunciation

• (Midlands) IPA^(key): /ˈswɛ(ː)ɡ(.)ə(ɹ)/
• (rural areas of Scotland) IPA^(key): /ˈswäɡ(.)əɹ/

Noun

swager (plural swagers)

1. (dialectal, rustic) A brother-in-law.

   Mehe swager wooner deh nowt at aw fer 'is kenship. 'e is a coont.

References

• The Dictionary of the Scots Language

Etymology 2

swage +‎ -er

Noun

swager (plural swagers)

1. A tool that performs swaging.

Anagrams

• Wagers, wagers

Middle Dutch

Etymology

From Old Dutch *swāgar, from Proto-West Germanic *swāgr, from Proto-Germanic *swēgraz.

Noun

swâger m

1. male in-law
   1. brother-in-law
   2. son-in-law
   3. father-in-law

Inflection

This noun needs an inflection-table template.

Descendants

• Dutch: zwager
  • Afrikaans: swaer
  • Berbice Creole Dutch: swagri
  • Negerhollands: swaeger
  • → Papiamentu: swa, sua
    • → Dutch: swa
  • → Sranan Tongo: swagri
    • → Aukan: swagi
    • → Caribbean Javanese: swagri
    • → Saramaccan: suwági
• Limburgish: zwaoger

Further reading

• “swagher”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
• Verwijs, E., Verdam, J. (1885–1929) “swager”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN