Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English homepage

Language: Old English
Origin: swellan

swell

1 verb
     
swell1 past tense swelled, past participle swollen
1

size

[intransitive] also swell up to become larger and rounder than normal - used especially about parts of the body [↪ swollen]:
Her ankle was already starting to swell.
The window frame was swollen shut.
2

amount/number

[intransitive and transitive] to increase in amount or number
swell to
The crowd swelled to around 10,000.
The river was swollen with melted snow.
swell the ranks/numbers of something (=increase the number of people in a particular situation)
Large numbers of refugees have swollen the ranks of the unemployed.
3

swell with pride/anger etc

to feel very proud, angry etc:
His heart swelled with pride as he watched his daughter collect her prize.
4

shape

[intransitive and transitive] also swell out to curve or make something curve:
The wind swelled the sails.
5

sound

[intransitive] literaryC to become louder:
Music swelled around us.
6

sea

[intransitive] to move suddenly and powerfully upwards
Definition from the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
Advanced Learner's Dictionary.

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