Dwell

Pronunciation

• enPR: dwÄ•l, IPA: /dwel/
• Rhymes: -É›l

Origin

From Old English dwellan, which is from or cognate to Old Norse dvelja.

According to "(eng. dwell er laan fra nord.)", "English dwell is a loanword from Old Norse"

Cognates include Danish dvæle and Swedish dväljas.

Full definition of dwell

Noun

1. (engineering) A period of time in which a system or component remains in a given state.
2. (engineering) A brief pause in the motion of part of a mechanism to allow an operation to be completed.
3. (electrical engineering) A planned delay in a timed control program.
4. (automotive) In a petrol engine, the period of time the ignition points are closed to let current flow through the ignition coil in between each spark. This is measured as an angle in degrees around the camshaft in the distributor which controls the points, for example in a 4-cylinder engine it might be 55° (spark at 90° intervals, points closed for 55° between each).

Verb

1. (intransitive, now literary) To live; to reside.
• Peachamthe parish in which I was born, dwell, and have possessions
• C. J. SmithThe poor man dwells in a humble cottage near the hall where the lord of the domain resides.
2. (intransitive) To linger (on) a particular thought, idea etc.; to remain fixated (on).
3. (intransitive, engineering) To be in a given state.
4. (intransitive) To abide; to remain; to continue.
• ShakespeareI'll rather dwell in my necessity.
• WordsworthThy soul was like a star and dwelt apart.

Related terms

• dwelling
• dwell on, dwell upon