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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

sweep.

To clean (a surface) by means of a stroking motion of a broom or brush.

5 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

verb/swiːp/India, New-Zealand, Received-Pronunciation/swip/Canada, General-American, Scotland/swiːp/Australia[swɪi̯p]Australia
  1. To clean (a surface) by means of a stroking motion of a broom or brush.

    transitive
  2. To move through a (horizontal) arc or similar long stroke.

    intransitive
    The wind sweeps across the plain.
    The offended countess swept out of the ballroom.
  3. To search (a place) methodically.

    transitive
  4. To travel quickly.

    figuratively · intransitive
  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.

    ergative · transitive
  8. To win (a series) without drawing or losing any of the games in that series.

    transitive
  9. To defeat (a team) in a series without drawing or losing any of the games in that series.

    transitive
  10. To clear (a body of water or part thereof) of mines.

    The channel was swept twice before the battlefleet proceeded through it.
  11. To remove something abruptly and thoroughly.

    transitive
    She swept the peelings off the table onto the floor.
    The wind sweeps the snow from the hills.
  12. To brush against or over; to rub lightly along.

  13. To carry with a long, swinging, or dragging motion; hence, to carry in a stately or proud fashion.

  14. To strike with a long stroke.

  15. To row with one oar to either the port or starboard side.

  16. To draw or drag something over.

    to sweep the bottom of a river with a net
  17. To pass over, or traverse, with the eye or with an instrument of observation.

    to sweep the heavens with a telescope
  18. To vacuum a carpet or rug.

    Pennsylvania · Western
Where this word comes from

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.

noun/swiːp/India, New-Zealand, Received-Pronunciation/swip/Canada, General-American, Scotland/swiːp/Australia[swɪi̯p]Australia
  1. A single action of sweeping.

    Give the front steps a quick sweep to get rid of those fallen leaves.
  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.

    Bradman attempted a sweep, but in fact top edged the ball to the wicket keeper
  7. A lottery, usually on the results of a sporting event, where players win if their randomly chosen team wins.

    Jim will win fifty dollars in the office sweep if Japan wins the World Cup.
  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.

    The MiG-17's inner wing has 45 degrees of sweep.
  10. A throw or takedown that primarily uses the legs to attack an opponent's legs.

  11. Violent and general destruction.

    the sweep of an epidemic disease
  12. A movable template for making moulds, in loam moulding.

  13. In the game casino, the act of capturing all face-up cards from the table.

  14. The compass of any turning body or of any motion.

    the sweep of a door; the sweep of the eye
  15. Direction or departure of a curve, a road, an arch, etc. away from a rectilinear line.

  16. A large oar used in small vessels, partly to propel them and partly to steer them.

  17. A rowing style in which each rower rows with oar on either the port or starboard side.

    attributive
    I am primarily a sweep rower.
  18. The almond furnace.

    obsolete
  19. A long pole, or piece of timber, moved on a horizontal fulcrum fixed to a tall post and used to raise and lower a bucket in a well for drawing water.

  20. Any of the blades of a windmill.

  21. The sweepings of workshops where precious metals are worked, containing filings, etc.

    in-plural
  22. Any of several sea chubs in the family Kyphosidae (subfamily Scorpidinae).

  23. An expanse or a swath, a strip of land.

  24. singular of sweeps (“viewership ratings”)

    US · form-of · singular
  25. The act of police removing a homeless encampment from a public space.

    US · possibly · regional
Where this word comes from

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.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.