Swimmer's Ear Is an Infection, Not a Shape
A swimmer is someone who swims. The condition named after swimmers is an infection of the outer ear canal.
A swimmer is someone who swims, for sport or pleasure. One medical term takes their name: *swimmer's ear* is otitis externa, an infection of the outer ear canal that develops when water is trapped there. It is treated with drops, and it has nothing to do with the middle ear infections children get.
- Someone who swims. *A strong swimmer.*
- Swimmer's ear — an outer ear infection. *Treated for swimmer's ear.*
- Swimming — the activity. *Swimming lessons.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | swimmer | A club swimmer. |
| Plural | swimmers | Open-water swimmers. |
| Verb | swim | Swim two lengths. |
| Past | swam | She swam well. |
| Participle | swum | He has swum before. |
How it is used in a sentence
- She is a competent swimmer.Ability.
- He swam, and he had swum there before.Swam is the past, swum the participle.
- Open-water swimmers wear bright caps.For visibility.
Competitive strokes
- Freestyle — any stroke, in practice front crawl
- Backstroke — on the back, the only stroke started in the water
- Breaststroke — the oldest competitive stroke
- Butterfly — the newest, developed from breaststroke in the 1930s
- Medley — all four in sequence
From *swim*, Old English *swimman*, a strong verb whose pattern — swim, swam, swum — has survived unchanged for a thousand years.
Swam or swum?
She swam yesterday; she has swum before. Swam is the simple past, swum follows have or has.
What is swimmer's ear?
An infection of the outer ear canal, often after water is trapped. It differs from middle ear infections and is usually treated with drops.