swath

[swoth, swawth]

noun

1. the space covered by the stroke of a scythe or the cut of a mowing machine.

2. the piece or strip so cut.

3. a line or ridge of grass, grain, or the like, cut and thrown together by a scythe or mowing machine.

4. a strip, belt, or long and relatively narrow extent of anything.

swath

/ sweɪð, swɔːθ /

noun

1. the width of one sweep of a scythe or of the blade of a mowing machine

2. the strip cut by either of these in one course

3. the quantity of cut grass, hay, or similar crop left in one course of such mowing

4. a long narrow strip or belt

Word History and Origins

Origin of swath¹

before 900; Middle English; Old English swæth footprint; cognate with German Shwade

Word History and Origins

Origin of swath¹

Old English swæth; related to Old Norse svath smooth patch

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. cut a swath, to make a pretentious display; attract notice.

   The new doctor cut a swath in the small community.

see cut a wide swath.

Example Sentences

Watching comedians perform under the thumb of a government that is actively attacking swaths of its population is nothing new for Angelo Colina.

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Some charcoal production will still be allowed, just in a more targeted way, by burning selected trees and branches rather than swaths of forest.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

I’ve used AI to summarize vast swaths of documents and pull needles from giant haystacks.

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More broadly, the furor in Azerbaijan over the crash laid bare Russia’s diminished influence in swaths of its former empire and beyond in the wake of its war in Ukraine.

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That has helped make the bigger subsidies politically popular across a swath of voters, in both parties.

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Related Words

• fodder 
• grass