swift
adjective
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swift
1 American
[swift]
/ swɪft /
adjective
-
swifter,
comparative
-
swiftest
superlative
-
moving or capable of moving with great speed or velocity; fleet; rapid.
a swift ship.
- Synonyms:
- speedy
-
coming, happening, or performed quickly or without delay.
a swift decision.
- Synonyms:
- expeditious
-
quick or prompt to act or respond.
swift to jump to conclusions.
-
Slang. quick to perceive or understand; smart; clever.
You can't cheat him, he's too swift.
adverb
noun
-
swifts
plural
-
any of numerous long-winged, swallowlike birds of the family Apodidae, related to the hummingbirds and noted for their rapid flight.
-
Also called ghost moth, swift moth. any of several brown or gray moths, the males of which are usually white, of the family Hepialidae, noted for rapid flight.
-
an adjustable device upon which a hank of yarn is placed in order to wind off skeins or balls.
-
the main cylinder on a machine for carding flax.
Swift
2
American
[swift]
/ swɪft /
noun
-
Gustavus Franklin, 1839–1903, U.S. meat packer.
-
Jonathan Isaac Bickerstaff, 1667–1745, English satirist and clergyman, born in Ireland.
SWIFT
3
American
[swift]
/ swɪft /
noun
swift
1
British
/ swɪft /
adjective
-
moving or able to move quickly; fast
-
occurring or performed quickly or suddenly; instant
a swift response
-
prompt to act or respond
swift to take revenge
adverb
noun
-
any bird of the families Apodidae and Hemiprocnidae, such as Apus apus ( common swift ) of the Old World: order Apodiformes. They have long narrow wings and spend most of the time on the wing
-
(sometimes capital) a variety of domestic fancy pigeon originating in Egypt and Syria and having an appearance somewhat similar to a swift
-
short for swift moth
-
any of certain North American lizards of the genera Sceloporus and Uta that can run very rapidly: family Iguanidae (iguanas)
-
the main cylinder in a carding machine
-
an expanding circular frame used to hold skeins of silk, wool, etc
Swift
2
British
/ swɪft /
noun
-
Graham Colin. born 1949, English writer: his novels include Waterland (1983), Last Orders (1996), which won the Booker prize, and The Light of Day (2002)
-
Jonathan. 1667–1745, Anglo-Irish satirist and churchman, who became dean of St Patrick's, Dublin, in 1713. His works include A Tale of a Tub (1704) and Gulliver's Travels (1726)
Synonym Usage
See quick.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of swift1
First recorded before 900; Middle English (adjective and adverb), Old English (adjective); akin to Old English swīfan “to revolve,” Old Norse svīfa “to rove”; see swivel
Origin of SWIFT3
First recorded in 1970–75
Explanation
If you were the first one to reach the finish line in gym class, the coach might have called you swift. Swift means quick or fast-moving. A glance, a current, even a decision can be swift. You can use the adjective swift to describe things that move or happen rapidly and smoothly. Deciding to borrow a parent's car without permission could result in swift punishment. Foxes are so swift that if you leave the chicken coop open for a moment, one might slip in. Conversely, if innuendo sails over your head, your friends might say, “You’re not too swift on the uptake, are you?” A swift is also a small bird that looks a lot like a swallow.
Vocabulary lists containing swift
"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act II
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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"Macbeth" Vocabulary from Act III
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The impact of the Panorama progamme was swift, and sizeable.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
He expects the loss to be manageable for Binance given the exchange’s $1.2 billion insurance fund and the swift move by Tether and Circle to freeze stolen assets.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
"What matters now is swift and consistent implementation," Volkswagen's chief financial officer Arno Antlitz said, warning that the company's ability to invest in future technologies was at stake.
From Barron's ● Oct. 29, 2026
As the swift air blows you back, you can experiment by twisting and turning your new appendages to experience the lift force and drop of various movements.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
The stream was too swift and the breeze too light for the sail to be effective.
From "Abel's Island" by William Steig
Space Force confirmed that Swift entered the atmosphere at 7:39 a.m.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2026
Swift also observed multiple wavelengths of light, giving researchers different ways to examine the same event and better understand the physical processes behind it.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 6, 2026
News of the Qualley-Antonoff split arose days after the latter was spotted attending Swift and Travis Kelce’s lavish wedding bash at New York City’s Madison Square Garden without his wife.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
"We've changed our processes now, and we've put some training out to our call taking team, so when Mr Swift rings again, he'll get a different answer," he said.
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
Most of those who worked in the Yard, including the skilled butchers still employed by Swift and his fellow bosses, chose to stay put in Packingtown, a short walk from work.
From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield
While volumes remain relatively small compared to oil or gas trade, the signal is unmistakable: Alternatives to SWIFT, the international payments messaging system, are on the table.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 2, 2025
More than 20 banks in Russia now use China’s version of SWIFT.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 27, 2023
As an alternative to SWIFT, the United Nations proposed that other banks could process payments.
From Reuters ● May 22, 2023
The allies have also frozen the assets of individuals and Russian banks, and severely limited Russia’s access to the international payment system, known as SWIFT.
From New York Times ● Oct. 7, 2022
Kok, a Dutch businessman of extreme wealth, was president of a Belgium-based banking company, SWIFT, and was responsible for organizing several international tournaments.
From "Endgame" by Frank Brady
Crockford watched swifts return to London after their annual migration from Africa, filling the air with their high-pitched calls.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
Several other college buildings also have boxes and at the North-West Cambridge development at Eddington, more than 200 bird boxes have been installed and a number of those are for swifts.
From BBC ● Jun. 30, 2026
Others have raised environmental concerns over colonies of common swifts nesting in the park.
From Barron's ● Jun. 26, 2026
"But swifts, swallows and hummingbirds have high values and can move far."
From Science Daily ● Dec. 3, 2024
A few days later the swallows and swifts felt the change and left the Northeast.
From "Frightful's Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
“We believe a swifter, clearer path to enter negotiations for a deferred prosecution agreement is in the best interests of everyone and so we’ve taken this feedback on board,” said Wagstaff.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 14, 2026
Norris said that he remained committed to bringing down the backlog and delivering swifter justice.
From BBC ● Oct. 4, 2026
As this technology developed, the photographs became more detailed and the animations swifter and smoother.
From Slate ● May 25, 2026
O’Brien’s rise to Olympian in the two-person bobsled, the second-fastest sliding sport of the Winter Games, has been even swifter.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 19, 2026
The closer she swam toward the center of the Kell, the colder it became and the swifter it flowed.
From "Huntress" by Malinda Lo
Miguel, posted the swiftest qualifying time, a wind-aided 10.27 — the fastest time in California this year — just minutes after Bakersfield sophomore Jalen Ford won his heat in a wind-aided 10.34.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 25, 2024
According to three of the commanders interviewed by The Times, the diplomatic route would be the swiftest way of returning the Israelis who remain in captivity.
From New York Times ● Jan. 20, 2024
A goal on Saturday would mean breaking the record for fastest to 50 - with Andy Cole's 65-game feat the swiftest on record in the Premier League era.
From BBC ● Nov. 24, 2023
The swiftest tightening of U.S. monetary policy in 40 years aimed at reining in sticky inflation has buoyed banks' interest income.
From Reuters ● Oct. 13, 2023
He also made him a present of eight of his swiftest horses, each horse decked with a golden bridle and a saddle encrusted with precious stones.
From "Beowulf: A New Telling" by Robert Nye
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