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• swat
  swat

  verb (used with object)

  to hit; slap; smack.
• Swat
  Swat

  noun

  a former princely state in NW India: now a part of Pakistan.
• SWAT
  SWAT

  noun

  a special section of some law enforcement agencies trained and equipped to deal with especially dangerous or violent situations, as when hostages are being held (often used attributively).

swat

¹ American  

[swot] / swɒt /

Or swot

verb (used with object)

swatted, swatting

1. to hit; slap; smack.

2. Baseball. to hit (a ball) powerfully, usually for a long distance.

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noun

• swats
  plural

1. a smart blow; slap; smack.

2. Baseball. a powerfully hit ball.

swat ² American  

[swot] / swɒt /

verb

Dialect.

1. simple past tense and past participle of sweat.

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swat ³ American  

[swot] / swɒt /

verb (used without object)

swatted, swatting

1. swot.

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Swat ⁴ American  

[swaht] / swɑt /

noun

1. a former princely state in NW India: now a part of Pakistan.

2. Also a Muslim inhabitant of Swat.

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SWAT ⁵ American  

[swot] / swɒt /

Or S.W.A.T.

noun

1. a special section of some law enforcement agencies trained and equipped to deal with especially dangerous or violent situations, as when hostages are being held (often used attributively).

   a SWAT team.

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verb (used with or without object)

swatted, SWATted, swatting, SWATting

1. Usually swat to cause a SWAT team to be deployed on (an unsuspecting victim, especially a public figure or someone prominent on social media) by falsifying a threat, often as a punishment or retaliation.

   His plan was to swat other gamers during their streaming broadcasts so everyone would see it happen.

   The film’s director was swatted when the sequel disappointed fans.

swat ¹ British  

/ swɒt /

verb

1. to strike or hit sharply

   to swat a fly

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noun

1. another word (esp Brit) for swatter

2. a sharp or violent blow

Swat ² British  

/ swɒt /

noun

1. a former princely state of NW India: passed to Pakistan in 1947

2. a river in Pakistan, rising in the north and flowing south to the Kabul River north of Peshawar. Length: about 640 km (400 miles)

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SWAT ³ British  

/ swɒt /

acronym

1. Special Weapons and Tactics: a military-like unit within the US police force, trained to deal with specially dangerous situations, such as hostage-taking and riots

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swat ⁴ British  

/ swɒt /

verb

1. a variant of swot 1

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• swats
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of swat¹

First recorded in 1615–25; originally variant of squat

Origin of SWAT⁵

First recorded in 1965–70; acronym from S(pecial) W(eapons) a(nd) T(actics)

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Explanation

To swat is to hit or bat at something. You might try to swat a fly with a rolled-up magazine and then watch your cat swat at it with her paws. Someone who's attacked by a swarm of wasps will swat at them as they run away, and a kid who's annoyed at her sister might swat her, too. The smack itself is also called a swat. Experts suspect that swat is an alteration of the Middle English swap, "to strike," which mimics the sound of a sharp blow.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

swat Swat SWAT swats swatted swatting

At another, he stretched out his full 8-foot wingspan to swat away a put-back dunk attempt.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026

If they can swat aside the Pumas, while injuries stretch the squad into another new shape, the impression of impregnability will only grow.

From BBC ● Nov. 23, 2025

Even House Rep. Chip Roy, an otherwise-reliable conspiracist, took to social media to swat down this feel-good hoax.

From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2025

Even the British have been trying to swat back Americanisms.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2025

She didn’t suck her teeth or swat me away.

From "The First Rule of Punk" by Celia C. Pérez

It is the first conviction in Wales of "swatting" - a phenomenon that gets its name because such hoax calls in the US prompt Swat police units to be called in.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

Some 50 charlifts dot the hillsides of nearby Swat Valley.

From Reuters ● Aug. 26, 2023

The attack took place near a fruit market in the town of Mingora, located in the district of Swat in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, according to senior local police officer Shafiullah Khan.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 8, 2023

The Health Department of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa declared a health emergency in Swat and placed all hospitals on red alert.

From New York Times ● Apr. 25, 2023

He was in Peshawar, staying in a room at a hostel with three other men, trying to get the media and the regional officials to understand what was going on in Swat this whole time.

From "Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Changed the World" by Malala Yousafzai

"SWAT team, bomb squad, K9 team, gang unit, negotiators, drone team. Every single asset we have to bring this to the safest conclusion is out here right now," he continued.

From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026

The sheriff's office added that the gunman's home in Anaconda had been searched, and "cleared by SWAT" teams.

From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2025

With a sterling record of busting down doors and arresting armed suspects over her decade in SWAT, Los Angeles police Lt.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 14, 2024

Ruben Lopez, who oversees SWAT, said the department learned from what happened in New York.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2023

Mr. McCraw excoriated Mr. Arredondo for letting injured children and teachers languish while waiting for SWAT, protective equipment and keys.

From New York Times ● Oct. 12, 2022

He shoots 3-pointers and swats them away; he slams home alley-oops and hauls in rebounds.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2025

At Henry’s school, a teacher swats down the boy’s interest in science in favor of ranting about his dismal salary.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 2, 2025

Didier Drogba swats a swerving hack of a volley past Tim Howard.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2024

Boone’s six swats matched a career high and forward Tyreek Smith matched his career best with three.

From Seattle Times ● Jan. 7, 2023

We use the whole rest of the jar of Vaseline, but when we pull again, Edna swats at us with her free hand.

From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina

A failed fourth-down attempt for USC would all but end it, as Maiava’s desperation pass was swatted away, along with the Trojans’ hopes.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 27, 2026

The players could be seen exchanging words throughout their match-up and, at one point during the second quarter, Harrison swatted at the ball being held by Reese after play had already been stopped.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 15, 2026

If getting your shot swatted by Wembanyama is humiliating, though, avoiding that shot altogether can be far worse.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

England captain Harry Kane, who scored a hat-trick, Michael Olise and summer signing Luis Diaz were on the scoresheet as Bayern swatted Ole Werner's team aside on home soil.

From BBC ● Apr. 19, 2026

He brought his right hand up to his neck to free himself and the guard swatted the hand away.

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

With residents already scratching and swatting, it took only a couple of charismatic entomologists to win over the right politicians to move legislation forward.

From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2026

A spokesperson for Tarian, the regional organised crime unit for south Wales, said swatting could be "extremely serious".

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

That’s because his secret superpower isn’t swatting away shots.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

Wolves have been observed swatting the birds away, even appearing to designate a pack member to stand guard.

From Barron's ● Mar. 12, 2026

I imagined myself riding a tan horse into the summer sunset, swatting any mosquito that tried to sting my awesomeness.

From "The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora" by Pablo Cartaya

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Related Words

• clobber
• knock
• slap
• slug
• smack
• smash
• whack

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