Tumefy \Tu"me*fy\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Tumefied}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Tumefying}.] [F. tum['e]fier, fr. L. tumere to swell + -ficare (in comp.) to make; cf. L. tumefacere to tumefy. See {Tumid}, and {-fy}.] To swell; to cause to swell, or puff up. To swell, tumefy, stiffen, not the diction only, but the tenor of the thought. --De Quincey.