• IPA: /swɒp/

From Middle English swappen, originally meaning "to hurl" or "to strike", the word alludes to striking hands together when making an exchange; probably from Old English *swappian, a secondary form of Old English swāpan.

swap (swaps, present participle swapping; simple past and past participle swapped)

1. (transitive) To exchange or give (something) in an exchange (for something else).

   Synonyms: exchange, switch, trade

2. (transitive, obsolete) To hit, to strike.
   • 1954, C. S. Lewis, The Horse and His Boy:

     "Maybe Apes will grow honest, Sister," said Edmund. "But, by the Lion, if he breaks it again, it may be in such time and place that any of us could swap off his head in clean battle."

3. (transitive, obsolete) To beat the air, or ply the wings, with a sweeping motion or noise; to flap.
4. (intransitive, obsolete) To descend or fall; to rush hastily or violently.

• (exchange or give (something) in exchange for) interchange, switch; See also Thesaurus:switch
• (hit, strike) bang, knock, tap; See also Thesaurus:hit
• (beat the air) flap
• (rush hastily) fly, speed, zoom; See also Thesaurus:rush

• French: permuter
• German: tauschen, austauschen, vertauschen, wechseln
• Italian: scambiare, barattare, permutare, commutare
• Portuguese: trocar, intercambiar
• Russian: меня́ться
• Spanish: intercambiar, canjear, trocar, cambalachear, permutar

From the verb swap.

swap (plural swaps)

1. An exchange of two comparable things.
2. (finance) A financial derivative in which two parties agree to exchange one stream of cashflow against another stream.
3. (computing, informal, uncountable) Space available in a swap file for use as auxiliary memory.

   How much swap do you need?

4. (Cantab slang) A social meal at a restaurant between two university societies, usually involving drinking and banter; commonly associated with fining and pennying; equivalent to a crewdate at University of Oxford.

• (an exchange of things) barter, quid pro quo, trade

• swap line
• swap meet

• French: échange
• German: Tausch, Tauschgeschäft
• Italian: scambio, baratto, permuta
• Portuguese: troca
• Russian: обме́н
• Spanish: cambalache, trueque, canje

• German: Swap
• Italian: permuta, scambio
• Portuguese: swap
• Russian: своп
• Spanish: permuta, swap, permuta financiera

From Middle English swap, swappe, from the verb (see Etymology 1 above).

swap

1. (obsolete, UK, dialect) A blow; a stroke.