Somehow the word\nallow is in the word\nswallow and in swallow\ntwo wholly different meanings:\none to take in through\nthe mouth and another\nwhat we call the common\nwinged gnat hunter who\nis, in all probability,\nsomewhere near us now.\nOnce, I thought\nif I knew all the words\nI would say the right thing\nin the right way,\ninstead language becomes\nmore brutish: blink twice\nfor the bird, blink once\nfor tender annihilation. Who\nknows what we are doing as\nwe go about our days lazily\nchoosing our languages. Some\ndays my life is held together\nby definitions, some days\nI read the word swallow\nand all my feathers show.

This poem appears in the March 2026 print edition.

About the Author

Ada Limón

Ada Limón is the author of seven books of poetry, including The Carrying, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. Her most recent book is Startlement: New and Selected Poems. She served as the 24th poet laureate of the United States.

","freeContentEncoded","textContent","published","strategy","curl-ready","locked","deletedAt","isSyncedFromOwnBlog","original","duplicatesCount","duplicateVersion","originalArticleId","errorsCount","appearance","color","backgroundColor","shortSummary","A poem explores the dual meanings of the word \"swallow\" and the complexities of language.","summary","The poem reflects on the word \"swallow,\" which has two distinct meanings: the act of ingestion and a type of bird. The speaker contemplates how language, intended to convey precise meaning, can become ambiguous and even \"brutish.\" Ultimately, the speaker finds that definitions can be both anchoring and disorienting, as the word \"swallow\" can evoke a sense of vulnerability.","bullets",[183,184,185,186],"The word \"swallow\" has two distinct meanings: to take something in through the mouth and a type of bird.","The speaker initially believed knowing all words would allow for precise communication.","Language can be perceived as \"brutish\" with meanings that are not always clear.","The poem highlights the ambiguity and emotional impact of words.","persons",[189],"Ada Limón","places",[],"words",155,"sentiment","subject","unknown","meta",{"_199":200,"_201":202,"_230":211},"type","bee:get-index-of-articles","schedule",{"_14":203,"_37":-5,"_204":205,"_67":-5,"_206":207,"_208":209,"_210":211,"_212":73,"_70":71,"_195":24,"_213":-5,"_214":71,"_164":165,"_215":216,"_39":216,"_217":218,"_219":73,"_220":221,"_41":216,"_222":71,"_69":99,"_223":224,"_225":-5,"_226":227,"_228":-5,"_229":-5},"e3d35f69-ea7f-42b4-bf9b-7b5139cb0abc","npub","npub13dhektgqh58xmgs8rga7elndr37jfy2x7qyrwt0ex0f9g0wakaqsy5ukzz","jobId","b974c66f-953b-4b1a-94a0-de4c603b546a","order",1,"rssUrl","https://www.theatlantic.com/world/","system","userRef","autosign","syncedAt","2025-12-15T19:29:27.600Z","frequency","daily","isOwnBlog","nextRunAt","2026-02-09T19:32:45.328Z","autopublish","sourceVariant","rss","systemVariant","scheduleVariant","scraping-bee-classic-proxy","retryArticlesIds","ownershipConfirmedAt","dataSourceUrl","eventId","1c29debc1de9c54279259e46b3dbb3a654e9c4b93ab51d9c8499dd43c7166803","nostrRootEvent","event",{"_14":232,"_236":237,"_238":209,"_67":239,"_252":251,"_157":253,"_254":255},"sig","a715d2cf95c60087ba39c8fd0afb89958c8b6579087cd90e1081fc66fef9dedd1a4d610edbf8e08c8e9de9bed7973c99f0c5473d1a413fa24f9047aac4b09cbb","kind",[240,241,242,246,249],[195,143],[29,150],[243,244,24,245],"a","30023:8b6f9b2d00bd0e6da2071a3becfe6d1c7d249146f008372df933d2543dddb741:5f544c62-8435-4bff-abd1-49ec20ed3b9f","mention",[247,248],"client","Layer3.press",[250,251,24],"p","8b6f9b2d00bd0e6da2071a3becfe6d1c7d249146f008372df933d2543dddb741","pubkey","Literary Theory\nCheck out more from this issue and find your next story to read.\n\n\nnostr:naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzpzm0nvksp0gwdk3qwx3manlx68rayjg5duqgxukljv7j2s7amd6pqqjr2e34xs6xxd3j95urgve4956xyenx94skyep3956rjetrxgcx2epnvgukvv87r36 ","created_at",1770665607,"authorNPub","markdown","Somehow the word _allow_ is in the word _swallow_ and in _swallow_ two wholly different meanings: one to take in through the mouth and another what we call the common winged gnat hunter who is, in all probability, somewhere near us now. Once, I thought if I knew all the words I would say the right thing in the right way, instead language becomes more brutish: blink twice for the bird, blink once for tender annihilation. Who knows what we are doing as we go about our days lazily choosing our languages. Some days my life is held together by definitions, some days I read the word _swallow_ and all my feathers show.\n\n_This poem appears in the March 2026 print edition._\n\n### About the Author\n\n[Ada Limón](https://www.theatlantic.com/author/ada-limon/)\n\nAda Limón is the author of seven books of poetry, including _[The Carrying](https://bookshop.org/a/12476/9781571315137)_, which won the National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry. Her most recent book is _[Startlement: New and Selected Poems](https://bookshop.org/a/12476/9781639550517)_. She served as the 24th poet laureate of the United States.","freeMarkdown","kind1EventId","kind30023EventId","b5f768e2bfc3daf58df6be3479fd6930513bb0f57f5db392d9ce01a619c670f4","kind30023",{"_14":262,"_236":265,"_238":266,"_67":267,"_252":251,"_157":281,"_254":255},"e3c2754e9f4a5411ca43e48a7ca597fd40c0a7f7667732c3458e3b6b8cbe74520d41cfb0bcae18ab4c1043134d66736a33e31434d486e321e05b5c46a711237c",30023,[268,271,272,275,276,278,279,280],[269,270],"r","https://news.layer3.press/articles/5f544c62-8435-4bff-abd1-49ec20ed3b9f",[26,143],[273,274],"published_at","1770570000",[29,150],[277,138],"d",[179,144],[247,248],[250,251,24],"Literary Theory\nThe poem reflects on the word \"swallow,\" which has two distinct meanings: the act of ingestion and a type of bird. The speaker contemplates how language, intended to convey precise meaning, can become ambiguous and even \"brutish.\" Ultimately, the speaker finds that definitions can be both anchoring and disorienting, as the word \"swallow\" can evoke a sense of vulnerability.\n - The word \"swallow\" has two distinct meanings: to take something in through the mouth and a type of bird.\n - The speaker initially believed knowing all words would allow for precise communication.\n - Language can be perceived as \"brutish\" with meanings that are not always clear.\n - The poem highlights the ambiguity and emotional impact of words.\n","publishedToNostr","htmlContentKind30023","

Somehow the word allow is in the word swallow and in swallow two wholly different meanings: one to take in through the mouth and another what we call the common winged gnat hunter who is, in all probability, somewhere near us now. Once, I thought if I knew all the words I would say the right thing in the right way, instead language becomes more brutish: blink twice for the bird, blink once for tender annihilation. Who knows what we are doing as we go about our days lazily choosing our languages. Some days my life is held together by definitions, some days I read the word swallow and all my feathers show.

This poem appears in the March 2026 print edition.

About the Author

Ada Limón

","pubDate","2026-02-08T17:00:00.000Z","modifiedAt","2026-02-09T15:35:03.000Z","2026-02-09T19:33:27.952Z","2026-02-09T19:34:20.553Z","storyId","likes","reposts","comments",{"_14":15,"_16":17,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":-5,"_23":24,"_25":24,"_26":27,"_28":24,"_29":30,"_31":32,"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":24,"_38":24,"_39":40,"_41":40,"_42":43,"_44":296,"_79":298},{"_14":43,"_46":19,"_47":19,"_48":49,"_28":50,"_51":52,"_53":-5,"_54":55,"_56":57,"_58":-5,"_59":-5,"_60":61,"_62":63,"_64":21,"_65":66,"_67":297,"_69":-5,"_70":71,"_72":73,"_74":73,"_75":-5,"_76":-5,"_77":-5,"_39":78,"_41":78},[],{"_81":15,"_82":83,"_84":-5,"_85":-5,"_86":87,"_88":299,"_97":300,"_101":102},{"_90":71,"_91":71,"_92":71,"_93":71,"_94":71,"_95":71,"_96":71},[99,100],"relatedArticles",[],"actionData","errors"]