Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Dwell \Dwell\, v. t.
To inhabit. [R.] --Milton.
Dwell \Dwell\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Dwelled}, usually contracted
into {Dwelt} (?); p. pr. & vb. n. {Dwelling}.] [OE. dwellen,
dwelien, to err, linger, AS. dwellan to deceive, hinder,
delay, dwelian to err; akin to Icel. dvelja to delay, tarry,
Sw. dv["a]ljas to dwell, Dan. dv[ae]le to linger, and to E.
dull. See {Dull}, and cf. {Dwale}.]
1. To delay; to linger. [Obs.]
2. To abide; to remain; to continue.
I 'll rather dwell in my necessity. --Shak.
Thy soul was like a star and dwelt apart.
--Wordsworth.
3. To abide as a permanent resident, or for a time; to live
in a place; to reside.
The parish in which I was born, dwell, and have
possessions. --Peacham.
The poor man dwells in a humble cottage near the
hall where the lord of the domain resides. --C. J.
Smith.
{To dwell in}, to abide in (a place); hence, to depend on.
``My hopes in heaven to dwell.'' --Shak.
{To dwell on} or {upon}, to continue long on or in; to remain
absorbed with; to stick to; to make much of; as, to dwell
upon a subject; a singer dwells on a note.
They stand at a distance, dwelling on his looks and
language, fixed in amazement. --Buckminster.
Syn: To inhabit; live; abide; sojourn; reside; continue;
stay; rest.
Source : WordNet®
dwell
v 1: think moodily or anxiously about something [syn: {brood}]
2: originate (in); "The problems dwell in the social injustices
in this country" [syn: {consist}, {lie}, {belong}, {lie in}]
3: make one's home or live in; "She resides officially in
Iceland"; "I live in a 200-year old house"; "These people
inhabited all the islands that are now deserted"; "The
plains are sparsely populated" [syn: {shack}, {reside}, {live},
{inhabit}, {people}, {populate}, {domicile}, {domiciliate}]
4: come back to; "Don't dwell on the past"; "She is always
harping on the same old things" [syn: {harp}]
[also: {dwelt}]