Jump To:

• 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.

---

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.

---

swat ³ American  

[swot] / swɒt /

verb (used without object)

swatted, swatting

1. swot.

---

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.

---

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.

---

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

---

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)

---

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

---

swat ⁴ British  

/ swɒt /

verb

1. a variant of swot 1

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• swats
  plural

---

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)

---

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

Meanwhile, Crosby’s camp sought to swat down any notion that his knee was actually a problem.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 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

Despite his near-constant presence in Los Angeles since the fires broke out, his effort to swat down misinformation has opened him up to jabs about his focus.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 23, 2025

They don’t swat the tourists on the heads with the menus.

From "The Unfinished Angel" by Sharon Creech

The Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan or TTP, were evicted from Swat and other regions in recent years.

From Seattle Times ● May 17, 2024

There was a heavy police presence, and Swat teams from Iraq's interior ministry joined them.

From BBC ● Feb. 7, 2024

Some 50 charlifts dot the hillsides of nearby Swat Valley.

From Reuters ● Aug. 26, 2023

Swat had been a popular tourist destination before it fell into the hands of the Taliban in late 2007.

From New York Times ● Apr. 25, 2023

The Taliban were retreating into the mountains of Swat.

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

“It couldn’t be handled within SWAT; it needed an immediate Internal Affairs investigation into this — it was getting dangerous,” he responded.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 4, 2024

Timothy Colomey said his fellow Los Angeles police officers had a nickname for him after he transferred out of SWAT: “Top Rope.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 4, 2024

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

Jennie could be your cool older sister, all dark sunglasses and leather jackets, as she swats away her choreography like a pesky house fly.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 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

Back at his desk, he rudely swats away the callers he deems less than emergent, curtly processing the rest.

From New York Times ● Sep. 30, 2021

Mrs. Tilbury swats a playful hand at him and shuttles back to the kitchen.

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin

The boy, who was not named in the report, swatted the bat off his face, after which his father caught the winged mammal in a pot and released it outside.

From BBC ● Jul. 2, 2026

He chased Fox down in the open court and swatted his shot out of the air.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026

In the quarter-finals, Georgia Stanway's rocket completed a remarkable comeback over pre-tournament favourites Spain, before Sweden were swatted aside in the semi-final, Alessia Russo's backheel the pick of four unanswered England goals.

From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2026

He was perfect into the fourth quarter until he got swatted on a layup attempt by Norman Powell.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026

The cat swatted at him with his paw.

From "Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat" by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

Though swatting is a well-known practice, law enforcement has a responsibility to take every threat seriously and investigate them thoroughly, she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026

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

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

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026

Six-time Grand Slam winner Carlos Alcaraz was put through his paces by German journeyman Yannick Hanfmann on Wednesday before swatting him aside to book his place in the Australian Open third round.

From Barron's ● Jan. 21, 2026

“Bah, I’m just kidding,” she says, swatting the air and—I think—trying to wink.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

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

---