Definitions for: Sweep


[n] a movement in an arc; "a sweep of his arm"
[n] (football) an attempt to advance the ball by running around the end of the line
[n] a long oar used in an open boat
[n] a wide scope; "the sweep of the plains"
[n] winning all or all but one of the tricks in bridge
[n] someone who cleans soot from chimneys
[v] win an overwhelming victory in or on; "Her new show dog swept all championships"
[v] sweep with a broom or as if with a broom; "Sweep the crumbs off the table"; "Sweep under the bed"
[v] clean by sweeping; "Please sweep the floor"
[v] make a big sweeping gesture or movement
[v] move with sweeping, effortless, gliding motions; "The diva swept into the room"; "Shreds of paper sailed through the air"; "The searchlights swept across the sky"
[v] sweep across or over; "Her long skirt brushed the floor"; "A gasp swept cross the audience"
[v] force into some kind of situation, condition, or course of action; "They were swept up by the events"; "don't drag me into this business"
[v] to cover a wide area; "Rivers traverse the valley floor", "The parking lot spans 3 acres"
[v] cover the entire range of



Webster (1913) Definition: Sweep, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Swept; p. pr. & vb. n.
Sweeping.] [OE. swepen; akin to AS. sw[=a]pan. See Swoop,
v. i.]
1. To pass a broom across (a surface) so as to remove loose
dirt, dust, etc.; to brush, or rub over, with a broom for
the purpose of cleaning; as, to sweep a floor, the street,
or a chimney. Used also figuratively.

I will sweep it with the besom of destruction.
--Isa. xiv.
23.

2. To drive or carry along or off with a broom or a brush, or
as if with a broom; to remove by, or as if by, brushing;
as, to sweep dirt from a floor; the wind sweeps the snow
from the hills; a freshet sweeps away a dam, timber, or
rubbish; a pestilence sweeps off multitudes.

The hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies. --Isa.
xxviii. 17.

I have already swept the stakes. --Dryden.

3. To brush against or over; to rub lightly along.

Their long descending train, With rubies edged and
sapphires, swept the plain. --Dryden.

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

And like a peacock sweep along his tail. --Shak.

5. To strike with a long stroke.

Wake into voice each silent string, And sweep the
sounding lyre. --Pope.

6. (Naut.) To draw or drag something over; as, to sweep the
bottom of a river with a net.

7. To pass over, or traverse, with the eye or with an
instrument of observation; as, to sweep the heavens with a
telescope.

To sweep, or sweep up, a mold (Founding), to form the
sand into a mold by a templet, instead of compressing it
around the pattern.


Sweep, v. i.
1. To clean rooms, yards, etc., or to clear away dust, dirt,
litter, etc., with a broom, brush, or the like.

2. To brush swiftly over the surface of anything; to pass
with switness and force, as if brushing the surface of
anything; to move in a stately manner; as, the wind sweeps
across the plain; a woman sweeps through a drawing-room.

3. To pass over anything comprehensively; to range through
with rapidity; as, his eye sweeps through space.


Sweep, n.
1. The act of sweeping.

2. The compass or range of a stroke; as, a long sweep.

3. The compass of any turning body or of any motion; as, the
sweep of a door; the sweep of the eye.

4. The compass of anything flowing or brushing; as, the flood
carried away everything within its sweep.

5. Violent and general destruction; as, the sweep of an
epidemic disease.

6. Direction and extent of any motion not rectlinear; as, the
sweep of a compass.

7. Direction or departure of a curve, a road, an arch, or the
like, away from a rectlinear line.

The road which makes a small sweep. --Sir W.
Scott.

8. One who sweeps; a sweeper; specifically, a chimney
sweeper.

9. (Founding) A movable templet for making molds, in loam
molding.

10. (Naut.)
(a) The mold of a ship when she begins to curve in at the
rungheads; any part of a ship shaped in a segment of
a circle.
(b) A large oar used in small vessels, partly to propel
them and partly to steer them.

11. (Refining) The almond furnace. [Obs.]

12. 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. [Variously written
swape, sweep, swepe, and swipe.]

13. (Card Playing) In the game of casino, a pairing or
combining of all the cards on the board, and so removing
them all; in whist, the winning of all the tricks
(thirteen) in a hand; a slam.

14. pl. The sweeping of workshops where precious metals are
worked, containing filings, etc.

Sweep net, a net for drawing over a large compass.

Sweep of the tiller (Naut.), a circular frame on which the
tiller traverses.

Synonyms: broom, chimneysweep, chimneysweeper, cross, drag, drag in, embroil, end run, expanse, sail, slam, span, sweep oar, sweep up, swing, swing out, tangle, traverse

See Also: ace, ambit, breeze through, bridge, clean, cleaner, compass, cover, extend, grand slam, handle, involve, little slam, make clean, motility, motion, move, move, movement, nail, oar, orbit, pass over, pass with flying colors, rake, range, reach, run, running, running game, running play, sail through, scope, small slam, swan, sweep through, triumph, victory, wield, win, wipe

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