swarf

[ swawrf ]

noun

an accumulation of fine particles of metal or abrasive cut or ground from work by a machine tool or grinder.

Origin of swarf

1560–70; <Old Norse svarf, akin to sverfa to file, or continuing Old English geswearf, gesweorf

Words Nearby swarf

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use swarf in a sentence

I never saw him plainer in my life than I did that moment; he held up an arrow as he passed me, and I swarf'd awa' wi' fright.
The Mysteries of All Nations | James Grant
swarf, swrf, n. the grit from a grindstone in grinding cutlery wet.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 4 of 4: S-Z and supplements) | Various
I never saw him plainer in my life than I did that moment; he held up an arrow as he passed me, and I swarf'd awa wi' fright.
The Monastery | Sir Walter Scott

British Dictionary definitions for swarf

swarf

/ (swɔːf, swɑːf) /

noun

material removed by cutting or grinding tools in the machining of metals, stone, etc
radioactive metal waste from a nuclear power station

small fragments of disintegrating spacecraft, orbiting the earth

Origin of swarf

C16: of Scandinavian origin; related to Old Norse svarf metallic dust

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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