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1 PHRASE If you say that a relationship or situation is not all sweetness and light , you mean that it is not as pleasant as it appears to be. □  It has not all been sweetness and light between him and the Prime Minister.

2 → see also sweet

swee t no th|ings N‑PLURAL If someone whispers sweet nothings to you, they quietly say nice, loving, and flattering things to you.

swee t pea (sweet peas ) also sweetpea N‑COUNT A sweet pea is a climbing plant which has delicate, sweet-smelling flowers.

swee t pe p|per (sweet peppers ) N‑COUNT A sweet pepper is a hollow green, red, or yellow vegetable.

swee t po|ta |to (sweet potatoes ) N‑VAR Sweet potatoes are vegetables that look like large ordinary potatoes but taste sweet. They have pinkish-brown skins and yellow flesh.

swee t shop (sweet shops ) also sweetshop N‑COUNT A sweet shop is a small shop that sells sweets and cigarettes, and sometimes newspapers and magazines. [BRIT ] in AM, use candy store

swee t talk (sweet talks , sweet talking , sweet talked ) also sweet-talk VERB If you sweet talk someone, you talk to them very nicely so that they will do what you want. □ [V n + into ] She could always sweet-talk Pamela into letting her stay up late. □ [V n] He even tried to sweet-talk the policewoman who arrested him.

swell /swe l/ (swells , swelling , swelled , swollen ) The forms swelled and swollen are both used as the past participle. 1 VERB If the amount or size of something swells or if something swells it, it becomes larger than it was before. □ [V ] The human population swelled, at least temporarily, as migrants moved south. □ [V + to/by ] His bank balance has swelled by £222,000 in the last three weeks. □ [V n + to ] Offers from other countries should swell the force to 35,000. [Also V n]

2 VERB If something such as a part of your body swells , it becomes larger and rounder than normal. □ [V ] Do your ankles swell at night? □ [V + to ] The limbs swell to an enormous size. ● PHRASAL VERB Swell up means the same as swell . □ [V P ] When you develop a throat infection or catch a cold the glands in the neck swell up.

3 VERB If you swell with a feeling, you are suddenly full of that feeling. [LITERARY ] □ [V + with ] She could see her two sons swell with pride.

4 ADJ You can describe something as swell if you think it is really nice. [AM , INFORMAL ] □  I've had a swell time.

5 → see also swelling , swollen , groundswell

▸  swell up → see swell 2

swell|ing /swe l I ŋ/ (swellings ) N‑VAR A swelling is a raised, curved shape on the surface of your body which appears as a result of an injury or an illness. □  His eye was partly closed, and there was a swelling over his lid.

swel|ter /swe ltə ^r / (swelters , sweltering , sweltered ) VERB If you swelter , you are very uncomfortable because the weather is extremely hot. □ [V ] They sweltered in temperatures rising to a hundred degrees.

swel|ter|ing /swe ltər I ŋ/ ADJ If you describe the weather as sweltering , you mean that it is extremely hot and makes you feel uncomfortable.

swept /swe pt/ Swept is the past tense and past participle of sweep .