swerve

American  

[swurv] / swɜrv /

verb (used without object)

swerves, present (3rd person singular) swerved, past participle, past swerving present participle

1. to turn aside abruptly in movement or direction; deviate suddenly from the straight or direct course.

---

verb (used with object)

swerves, present (3rd person singular) swerved, past participle, past swerving present participle

1. to cause to turn aside.

   Nothing could swerve him.

noun

1. an act of swerving; turning aside.

swerve British  

/ swɜːv /

verb

1. to turn or cause to turn aside, usually sharply or suddenly, from a course

2. (tr) to avoid (a person or event)

---

noun

1. the act, instance, or degree of swerving

Synonym Usage

See deviate.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unswervingness
  noun
• swerver
  noun
• unswervingly
  adverb
• swervable
  adjective
• unswerving
  adjective
• unswerved
  adjective

Conjugated Forms

Present

• has swerved
  perfect 3rd person singular
• have swerved
  perfect
• is swerving
  progressive 3rd person singular
• has been swerving
  perfect progressive 3rd person singular
• have been swerving
  perfect progressive
• am swerving
  progressive 1st person singular
• are swerving
  progressive
• swerves
  singular 3rd person
• swerving
  participle

Past

• had swerved
  perfect
• were swerving
  progressive plural
• swerved
  participle
• was swerving
  progressive singular
• had been swerving
  perfect progressive
• swerved
  simple

Future

• will swerve
  simple
• will have swerved
  perfect
• will have been swerving
  perfect progressive
• will be swerving
  progressive

Etymology

Origin of swerve

1175–1225; Middle English swerven (v.); Old English sweorfan to rub, file; cognate with Dutch zwerven to rove, Old High German swerban, Old Norse sverfa to file, Gothic afswairban to wipe off

Explanation

The noun swerve means a sudden turn off your path. As a verb, it means to move off your original route, possibly to avoid a collision. You can swerve either toward something or away from it. The word swerve can be traced to the Old English sweorfan, "to turn aside," which is precisely the modern sense. It was first used as a verb in the 13th century and as a noun in the 18th. Swerve refers to a sudden veering off, perhaps not as sharp as a turn, but more a bending of your path. Think of the trajectory as an arc or curve, and remember that swerve rhymes with curve.

Related Words

• deflect
• lurch
• skid
• stray
• veer