sweeper

[swee-per]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sweeper ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person or thing that sweeps.

a janitor.

any of several fishes of the family Pempherididae, of tropical and warm, temperate seas, having an oblong, compressed body.

Origin of sweeper

late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at sweep¹, -er¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for sweeper

custodian, attendant, superintendent, sitter, sponge, towel, mop, broom, toothbrush, gatekeeper, caretaker, concierge, super, porter, doorkeeper, swab, squeegee, whisk, besom, polisher

Examples from the Web for sweeper

Historical Examples of sweeper

It was so still, not even a sweeper to break the blessed peace.
Jan and Her Job
L. Allen Harker
If you are only a sweeper, be glad that you were not born a pig or a cobra.
Where Half The World Is Waking Up
Clarence Poe
But you won't need a sweeper for the floor of the porch, Berta.
Mary's Rainbow
Mary Edward Feehan
A broom is best, because you cant get around the corners with a sweeper.
The New Education
Scott Nearing
Ten minutes later the sweeper's signal whistle was repeated.
Dave Darrin After The Mine Layers
H. Irving Hancock

British Dictionary definitions for sweeper

sweeper

noun

a person employed to sweep, such as a roadsweeper

any device for sweepinga carpet sweeper

informal soccer a player who supports the main defenders, as by intercepting loose balls, etc

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