swipe

1 of 2

noun

plural swipes
1
a
: a strong sweeping blow
a swipe of a paw
… he took a swipe at the ball before it stopped moving, a two stroke penalty.Ken Fidlin
b
: a sliding gesture (as across the touch screen of a mobile device)
In this day and age, with information available at the push of a button or a swipe, Avdeev's situation is remarkable and rare.Christopher Miller
Vividly colored orbs appear from time to time, sometimes slowly, often in a mad rush, and seemingly at random. You can move them around with a finger swipeDavid Price
2
: a sharp often critical remark
took a parting swipe at management
Below the picture, the text took a swipe at Perdue's claims …Thomas Whiteside

swipe

2 of 2

verb

swiped; swiping; swipes

intransitive verb

1
: to strike or move with a sweeping motion
Among carnivores like the great cats, wolves and hyenas, cubs pretend to capture prey: stalking, pouncing, biting, swiping at objects with claws extended.Natalie Angier
2
: to operate something (such as a function on a mobile device) by sliding one's finger while pressing against a touch screen
On the plus side, it does come with extra large icons on the home screen, and a button bar that you swipe up from the bottom for easy access to video tutorials, troubleshooting tools and 24/7 phone support.Jennifer Jolly

transitive verb

1
: to strike or wipe (something or someone) with a sweeping motion
Pallone mimicked Rose's gestures in rebuttal—and, perhaps inadvertently, swiped Rose on the cheek near his left eye.Steve Wulf
One model boasted a small rectangular "rest" that kept the head from touching the counter when it was laid down and also sported a useful notch for swiping the rim of a jar or bowl.Lisa McManus
2
: to activate or control (something) with a swiping gesture
Tinder allows users to swipe their phone screen to the right when they see a picture of someone they like. …The Mercury (South Africa)
3
: steal, pilfer
In a jailhouse interview in Russia, a former uranium worker explains why he swiped nuclear material to sell: He needed money for a new fridge and stove.David Corn
4
: to slide (a card with a magnetic strip or bar code) through a slot in a reading device so that information contained in the strip or code can be processed (as in making a purchase)
Instead of swiping your credit card, or inserting its chip to complete the payment process, contactless technology lets you make a purchase by placing or hovering your card or phone near a payment terminal, a.k.a. the credit card machine.Geoffrey Morrison

Examples of swipe in a Sentence

Noun She took a swipe at her former company in her latest column. a swipe of the cat's paw Verb The cat swiped the dog across the nose. They swiped some candy from the store. The cashier swiped the credit card and gave it back to me.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
By paying, users can unlock features like unlimited swipes and the ability to see who has swiped on them. J. Edward Moreno, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2024 Knight, who once brought a bullwhip to practice and took a gentle swipe in the direction of Calbert Cheaney, a Black player. The Indianapolis Star, 8 Mar. 2024 That the swipe prices (at present, .21 cents) are lower is a statement of the obvious. John Tamny, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Currently, Visa and Mastercard leverage their 80% control of the market to drive up swipe fees at will. Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 1 Feb. 2024 Founding Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth has taken an extraordinary swipe at Wolfgang, the band’s bass player and son of the late, great guitarist Eddie Van Halen and actress Valerie Bertinelli. Lars Brandle, Billboard, 25 Jan. 2024 The color is buildable, but just one swipe was able to give me a hazy dose of color. Alyssa Brascia, Peoplemag, 29 Feb. 2024 Fargo sued last year, calling the law unconstitutional and a swipe at the city's home rule powers. Jack Dura, Quartz, 23 Feb. 2024 Tampa Bay picked off league MVP Rich Gannon five times, three of those swipes of the pick-six variety. Nate Davis, USA TODAY, 30 Jan. 2024
Verb
Curry stayed in front of James and swiped a steal, clinching the tight win. Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 17 Mar. 2024 TikTok did send an in-app notification asking users to call their representatives, but users could click the X on the notification to dismiss it or swipe it away and continue to use the app. Taylor Lorenz, Washington Post, 16 Mar. 2024 The Cincinnati Bengals were driving toward a potential game-tying field goal in the final seconds of the 2022 championship game at Sofi Stadium when Donald swiped past a guard and eluded the center and put both giant hands on Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow. Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2024 Some retailers think their customers will jump at the first chance to swipe stuff, and some don’t. Melvin Backman, Quartz, 14 Mar. 2024 If not a victim themselves of a theft, or thefts, many people seem to know someone whose car was swiped, and just about everyone can instantly recall one of the car theft headlines that news outlets have had plenty of opportunity to publish. Vjosa Isai, New York Times, 24 Feb. 2024 Speed dating also requires a bigger emotional investment than app swiping — so the sting of rejection can feel more intense. Tatum Hunter, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 Kassim allegedly swiped numerous counterfeit or stolen EBT cards through a terminal and entered corresponding PINs without victims' knowledge or permission, according to court documents. USA TODAY, 28 Feb. 2024 When an image is presented, the user swipes right to share to friends on the app, left to archive, or delete. David Bloom, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'swipe.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

probably alteration of sweep

First Known Use

Noun

1788, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

circa 1825, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of swipe was in 1788

Dictionary Entries Near swipe

Cite this Entry

“Swipe.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/swipe. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

swipe

1 of 2 verb
swiped; swiping
1
: to strike or wipe with a sweeping motion
2
: pilfer
3
: to slide (a card with a magnetic strip or bar code) through a slot in a reading device so that information stored on the strip can be processed (as in making a purchase)

swipe

2 of 2 noun
: a strong sweeping blow

More from Merriam-Webster on swipe

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