sweep has definitions from the fields of sport,american football,nautical,bridge,work
1
[ verb ] sweep across or over

Synonyms

brush

Examples

"Her long skirt brushed the floor" "A gasp swept cross the audience"

Used in print

(Louis Zara, Dark Rider....)

After the storm , the sky cleared blue and cool , and fragrant air swept the hills .

(Octavia Waldo, A Cup of the Sun....)

Her tanned foot , whose arch swept high and white , pointed artfully toward tapering toes - toes like fingers , whose tips glowed white .

Related terms

move brush

2
[ verb ] move with sweeping, effortless, gliding motions

Synonyms

sail

Examples

"The diva swept into the room" "Shreds of paper sailed through the air" "The searchlights swept across the sky"

Used in print

(Sallie Bingham, "Moving Day," The Atlantic...)

Miss_Ada had giggled , and she went sweeping and rustling to the couch and sank down .

3
[ verb ] sweep with a broom or as if with a broom

Synonyms

broom

Examples

"Sweep the crumbs off the table" "Sweep under the bed"

Used in print

(The New Republic, 145: 19...)

After a nuclear blast , one bureaucrat suggested in those halcyon days , about all you had to do was haul out the broom and sweep off your sidewalks and roof .

(Amber Dean, Encounter with Evil....)

Grosse quietly got a broom and started to sweep up the sugar .

(Clifford Irving, The Valley....)

A bold line of violet broke_loose from the high ridge of the mountains , followed by feathers of red that swept the last stars from the sky .

Related terms

wipe sweeping carpet_sweeper

4
[ noun ] a wide scope

Synonyms

expanse

Examples

"the sweep of the plains"

Used in print

(John Cheever, "The Brigadier and the Golf Widow,"...)

The clear and searching sweep of sun on the lawns was like a climax of the year 's lights .

(Leo Lemon, "Catch Up With" and "Something to...)

The sweep of space , the delicate counterbalance of the white masses , the over-all completeness and unity , the originality and imagination , all entitle it to be called an authentic masterpiece .

Related terms

scope

5
[ verb ] force into some kind of situation, condition, or course of action

Examples

"They were swept up by the events" "don't drag me into this business"

Used in print

(Tristram P. Coffin, "Folklore in the American Twentieth...)

Nor is it an accident that baseball , growing into the national game in the last 75 years , has become a microcosm of American life , that learned societies such_as the American_Folklore_Society and the American_Historical_Association were founded in the 1880's , or that courses in American literature , American civilization , American anything have swept our school and college curricula .

Related terms

involve imbroglio

6
[ verb ] to cover or extend over an area or time period

Synonyms

span traverse cross

Examples

"Rivers traverse the valley floor", "The parking lot spans 3 acres" "The novel spans three centuries"

Used in print

(Whit Masterson, Evil Come, Evil Go....)

He sensed rather_than heard the gasp that swept across the audience .

Related terms

cover

7
[ verb ] clean by sweeping

Examples

"Please sweep the floor"

Used in print

(The Washington Post...)

Anticipated heavy traffic along the Skyline_Drive failed to materialize yesterday , park rangers said , and those who made the trip got a leisurely view of the fall colors through skies swept clear of haze .

Related terms

clean sweeping chimneysweeper

8
[ verb ] win an overwhelming victory in or on

Examples

: "Her new show dog swept all championships"

Used in print

(The Oregonian, [Portland],...)

John_Haase + Son of Corneilus was the only entrant in open class swine and swept all championships .

Related terms

win

9
[ verb ] make a big sweeping gesture or movement

Synonyms

swing swing_out

Related terms

wield

10
[ noun ] (bridge) winning all or all but one of the tricks in bridge

Synonyms

slam

11
[ noun ] (American football) an attempt to advance the ball by running around the end of the line

Synonyms

end_run

Related terms

run American_football

12
[ noun ] (work) someone who cleans soot from chimneys

Related terms

cleaner

13
[ verb ] cover the entire range of

Related terms

cover rake

14
[ noun ] (nautical) a long oar used in an open boat

Synonyms

sweep_oar

Related terms

oar

15
[ noun ] a movement in an arc

Examples

"a sweep of his arm"

Related terms

motion swing

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