swathe

¹ American  

[swoth, sweyth] / swɒð, sweɪð /

verb (used with object)

swathed, swathing

1. to wrap, bind, or swaddle with bands of some material; wrap up closely or fully.

2. to bandage.

3. to enfold or envelop, as wrappings do.

4. to wrap (cloth, rope, etc.) around something.

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noun

1. a band of linen or the like in which something is wrapped; wrapping; bandage.

swathe ² American  

[swoth, sweyth] / swɒð, sweɪð /

noun

1. swath.

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swathe British  

/ sweɪð /

verb

1. to bandage (a wound, limb, etc), esp completely

2. to wrap a band, garment, etc, around, esp so as to cover completely; swaddle

3. to envelop

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noun

1. a bandage or wrapping

2. a variant spelling of swath

Other Word Forms

• swathable
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of swathe

before 1050; (noun) Middle English; Old English *swæth or *swath (in swathum dative plural); cf. swaddle; (v.) Middle English swathen, late Old English swathian, derivative of the noun; cognate with Old Norse svatha

Explanation

When you swathe yourself in a blanket, you are wrapping or swaddling yourself up in it. Swathe a baby up and you're creating a little cocoon where she can sleep. Sometimes spelled "swath," swathe is commonly used to talk about how you wrap up a baby in a soft blanket. The verb can also refer to binding a wound with bandages; as a noun, a swathe is a long strip or bandage to protect a wound. Swathe derives from an Old English word, swaþian, which means "to wrap."

Example Sentences

There stands a lonely pine-tree In the north, on a barren height; He sleeps while the ice and snow flakes Swathe him in folds of white.

From Poems and Ballads of Heinrich Heine by Heine, Heinrich

Swathe the body in the thickest of non-conductors of heat, and what happens?

From The Silent Bullet by Reeve, Arthur B. (Arthur Benjamin)

Swathe after swathe fell to the ground in a straight line behind them, and the binders bound them in bands of twisted straw.

From The Iliad by Homer

Related Words

• bandage
• clothe
• swaddle
• wrap