Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. unpleasant food or drink.

1851		G. Thompson Jack Harold 38: Mr. Piggot kicked our hero heavily in the side, and ordered him to go to the door and take in his ‘swill,’ as he facetiously termed it.
1887		W.E. Henley ‘Villon’s Good-Night’ in Farmer Musa Pedestris (1896) 175: And gave me mumps and mulligrubs / With skilly and swill that made me clam.
1891		A. Day Mysterious Beggar 302: Beer’s a sloppy slushy swill.
1903		J. London People of the Abyss 98: The poor devils were hungry, and they ate ravenously of the swill.
1912		D. Lowrie My Life in Prison 300: I asked him if he were not going to breakfast. ‘Not on y’r life,’ he answered. ‘No more prison swill.’.
1920		B. Cronin Timber Wolves 146: Kind of rejuvination my innards against [...] Sollum’s everlasting dough-balls and swill. That man’s cooking would annoy a wart-hog.
1934		‘Hinky-Dinky’ in Lomax & Lomax Amer. Ballads and Folk Songs 559: Our grease-ball is a goddam dirty bum, / He bails out swill and makes the slum.
1949		Monteleone Criminal Sl. (rev. edn).
1958		F. Norman Bang To Rights 76: I personaly petitioned to the Home Secretre three times about the swill they served us up.
1966		P. Boyle At Night All Cats Are Grey 22: Michael attempted to fob him off with stout [...] ‘Swill!’ he pronounced. ‘Swill! A proper pig’s drink. Wheeshky, I said.’.
1971		N. Smith Gumshoe (1998) 41: The night porter was serving more swill to the oiks in the lounge.
1982		R.M. Brown Southern Discomfort (1983) 132: I’d be sick, too, if I drank the swill he does.
1996		P. Beatty White Boy Shuffle 98: Joe offered me a sip of pink swill from a pint of Mad Dog 20/20.
1999		(con. 1979–80) A. Wheatle Brixton Rock (2004) 5: He [...] began to regret his bad-bwai attitude to the pig with the swill.
2019		P. Temple ‘High Art’ in The Red Hand 44: ‘This swill certainly endangers life. Got any non-craft beer?’.

2. alcohol.

1870		D. Kirwan Palace & Hovel 478: The women call champagne ‘fizz’ and ale ‘swill’.
c.1872		‘The Publican’s New Sunday Act’ in Henderson Victorian Street Ballads (1937) 94: And many a hungry child his belly may fill, / ’cause his lushy old father can get no more swill.
1875		‘Aliph Cheem’ Lays of Ind (1905) 188: Now Major Swill and Doctor Pill / Were rivals on the stage.
1888		S.O. Addy Sheffield Gloss. 248: Swill, drink, alcohol.
1903		Sun. Times (Perth) 4 Jan. 4/7: Beginning with a vow that no more alcoholic swill / Will ever irrigate his diaphragm.
1914		Bulletin (Sydney) 31 Dec. 11: [cartoon caption] A Christmas Toast. / ‘Peace on earth, cheap swill towards men.’.
1930		J. Lait Put on the Spot 76: That swill what Kinky used ’d make a rabbit fight a tiger.
1938		J. Digges Bowleg Bill in Botkin (1944) 11–18: Git aloft there, ye swill-sotted son of a sarpint.
1955		A.W. Upfield Cake in Hat Box 141: Have one with me [...] What’s your swill?
1958		A. Sillitoe Sat. Night and Sun. Morning 15: He had put away more swill than Loudmouth.

3. a cup of tea.

1891		A.E. Durandeau [perf. Charles Godfrey] ‘Giddy Little Curate’ 🎵 I go out each afternoon for a chatter and a spoon / And each girl a pot of tea will surely keep hot / And I have a little swill, though I never seem to fill / And the girls say I'm a giddy little tea-pot.
1966		(con. 1948–52) L. Thomas Virgin Soldiers 10: I was going to have a swill, but it’s too late now.
1977		(con. 1960s) Nicholson & Smith Spend, Spend, Spend (1978) 154: I’d had nothing to eat, I didn’t even have time to get a swill.

4. in fig. use, anything disgusting, second-rate, distasteful.

1947		B. Schulberg Harder They Fall (1971) 125: The guy who dished out hyperbolic swill about Joe Roundheels and Man Mountain Molina.
1958		H.S. Thompson letter 31 Mar. in Proud Highway (1997) 113: A sampling of the kind of swill I’m paying to read.
1963		H.S. Thompson letter 6 Apr. in Proud Highway (1997) 371: I would rather write nothing at all than grind out second-rate swill.
1977		S. Berkoff East in Decadence and Other Plays (1985) 66: Electric media swill – consumer me – Hawaii Five-O – Z Cars.

5. (US) a drink.

2011

F. Bill ‘Cold, Hard Love’ in Crimes in Southern Indiana [ebook] ‘Think Carol’d mind if you natured yourself a swill?’.