swab

¹ American  

[swob] / swɒb /

noun

1. a large mop used on shipboard for cleaning decks, living quarters, etc.

2. a bit of sponge, cloth, cotton, or the like, sometimes fixed to a stick, for cleansing the mouth of a sick person or for applying medicaments, drying areas, etc.

3. the material collected with a swab as a specimen for microscopic study.

4. a brush or wad of absorbent material for cleaning the bore of a firearm.

5. Slang. a sailor; swabby.

6. Slang. a clumsy fellow.

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verb (used with object)

swabbed, swabbing

1. to clean with or as if with a swab.

   to swab the decks.

2. to take up or apply, as moisture, with or as if with a swab.

   to swab soapy water from the decks.

3. to pass over a surface.

   to swab a mop over the decks.

Swab. ² American  

abbreviation

1. Swabia.

2. Swabian.

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swab British  

/ swɒb /

noun

1. med

   1. a small piece of cotton, gauze, etc, for use in applying medication, cleansing a wound, or obtaining a specimen of a secretion, etc

   2. the specimen so obtained

2. a mop for cleaning floors, decks, etc

3. a brush used to clean a firearm's bore

4. slang an uncouth or worthless fellow

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verb

1. (tr) to clean or medicate with or as if with a swab

2. to take up with a swab

Other Word Forms

• unswabbed adjective

Etymology

Origin of swab

First recorded in 1645–55; back formation from swabber

Example Sentences

Olympics and beyond will be determined by a one-time genetics test through saliva, a cheek swab or a blood sample.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 30, 2026

Screening may be done non-invasively, via saliva or a cheek swab, and women who get a negative result are cleared to compete for the rest of their lives.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026

The test requires screening through saliva, a cheek swab or a blood sample.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

Doctors typically swab a patient’s cervix in clinical settings to test for high-risk strains of the human papillomavirus, an infection that can cause cancer when left untreated, through Pap smears and HPV testing.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 5, 2026

If there had been any irons aboard, they would have been occupied by the fumbling landlubber or scurvy swab who forgot his duties and made Dad miss the mooring.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

Related Words

• daub
• mop