swan song
noun
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Swans don't sing. They whistle or trumpet, or in the case of the swan most common in ponds, the mute swan, they only hiss and snort. But according to ancient legend, the swan does sing one beautiful song in its life-just before it dies. References in English to the dying swan's lovely singing go back as far as Chaucer, but the term swan song itself didn't appear in the language until the 1830s, when Thomas Carlyle used it in Sartor Resartus. Carlyle probably based his "swan song" on the German version of the term, which is Schwanengesang or Schwanenlied.
Examples of swan song in a Sentence
Malik Peay, Essence, 19 Aug. 2025
During the series finale episode, meant to be a lovely swan song for Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon) and Charlotte York Goldenblatt (Kristin Davis), Miranda's toilet overflowed with poop after frequent use by a Thanksgiving dinner guest throughout the day.
—Carson Blackwelder, People.com, 15 Aug. 2025
In what may be her swan song for the brand (the brand has yet to release a formal statement), Chiuri looked to her roots in Rome and with a concept that gestured towards the artistic director's new passion project.
—Roxanne Robinson, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
It’s already been four years since the last James Bond movie, Daniel Craig’s Bond swan song, No Time to Die, was released in theaters, and, in that lull, there’s still no new actor cast as James Bond.
—Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 1 Aug. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Swan song.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/swan%20song. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.
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