English Explanatory Dictionary

sweep

English dictionary entry

Meanings

verb
  1. To clean (a surface) by means of a stroking motion of a broom or brush.
  2. To move through a (horizontal) arc or similar long stroke.
  3. To search (a place) methodically.
  4. To travel quickly.
  5. To play a sweep shot.
  6. To brush the ice in front of a moving stone, causing it to travel farther and to curl less.
  7. To move something in a long sweeping motion, as a broom.
  8. To win (a series) without drawing or losing any of the games in that series.
  9. To defeat (a team) in a series without drawing or losing any of the games in that series.
  10. To clear (a body of water or part thereof) of mines.
  11. To remove something abruptly and thoroughly.
  12. To brush against or over; to rub lightly along.
noun
  1. A single action of sweeping.
  2. The person who steers a dragon boat.
  3. A person who stands at the stern of a surf boat, steering with a steering oar and commanding the crew.
  4. A chimney sweep.
  5. A methodical search, typically for bugs (electronic listening devices).
  6. A batsman's shot, played from a kneeling position with a swinging horizontal bat.
  7. A lottery, usually on the results of a sporting event, where players win if their randomly chosen team wins.
  8. A flow of water parallel to shore caused by wave action at an ocean beach or at a point or headland.
  9. The degree to which an aircraft's wings are angled backwards (or, occasionally, forwards) from their attachments to the fuselage.
  10. A throw or takedown that primarily uses the legs to attack an opponent's legs.
  11. Violent and general destruction.
  12. A movable template for making moulds, in loam moulding.

Pronunciation

swēp /swiːp/ en-au-sweep.ogg /swip/ en-us-sweep.ogg

Word forms

sweep sweeps sweeping swept

Etymology

From Middle English swepen, from Proto-West Germanic *swaipijan (unattested in Old English), from Proto-Germanic *swaipijaną. Cognate with Early Modern West Frisian swiepe (“whip, cleanse, sweep”), from Old Frisian swēpa, suepa (“sweep”). More distantly related to Old Norse sveipa (whence Swedish svepa). See also swoop.

Synonyms

swing

Derived words

asweep bisweptual ensweep new brooms sweep clean oversweep resweep sweepable sweep across sweepage sweep along sweep aside sweep away sweepback sweepboat sweep-chimney sweeper sweep in sweep out sweep someone off their feet sweep something under the carpet sweep something under the rug sweep the board sweep the deck sweep the floor with someone sweep up sweepy downsweep upsweep chimney sweep clean sweep footsweep foot sweep insweep jet sweep leg sweep mark and sweep May-day sweep May Day sweep multisweep muzzle sweep outsweep ping sweep podium sweep portsweep reverse sweep sea sweep slog-sweep sweepdom sweeplike sweep line sweep net sweep picking sweep saw sweepstake sweepwasher sweep-washer variable sweep

Translations

Finnish: voittaa puhtaasti
This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.
Back to search All on S Russian dictionary Dahl dictionary