switch

[ swich ]

/ swɪtʃ /

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See synonyms for: switch / switched / switching / switchable on Thesaurus.com

noun

a slender, flexible shoot, rod, etc., used especially in whipping or disciplining.

an act of whipping or beating with or as with such an object; a stroke, lash, or whisking movement.

a slender growing shoot, as of a plant.

a hairpiece consisting of a bunch or tress of long hair or some substitute, fastened together at one end and worn by women to supplement their own hair.

Electricity. a device for turning on or off or directing an electric current or for making or breaking a circuit.

Railroads. a track structure for diverting moving trains or rolling stock from one track to another, commonly consisting of a pair of movable rails.

a turning, shifting, or changing: a switch of votes to another candidate.

Bridge. a change to a suit other than the one played or bid previously.

Basketball. a maneuver in which two teammates on defense shift assignments so that each guards the opponent usually guarded by the other.

a tuft of hair at the end of the tail of some animals, as of the cow or lion.

verb (used with object)

to whip or beat with a switch or the like; lash: He switched the boy with a cane.

to move, swing, or whisk (a cane, a fishing line, etc.) with a swift, lashing stroke.

to shift or exchange: The two girls switched their lunch boxes.

to turn, shift, or divert: to switch conversation from a painful subject.

Electricity. to connect, disconnect, or redirect (an electric circuit or the device it serves) by operating a switch (often followed by off or on): I switched on a light.

Railroads.

to move or transfer (a train, car, etc.) from one set of tracks to another.
to drop or add (cars) or to make up (a train).

Movies, Television. to shift rapidly from one camera to another in order to change camera angles or shots.

verb (used without object)

to strike with or as with a switch.

to change direction or course; turn, shift, or change.

to exchange or replace something with another: He used to smoke this brand of cigarettes, but he switched.

to move or sway back and forth, as a cat's tail.

to be shifted, turned, etc., by means of a switch.

Basketball. to execute a switch.

Bridge. to lead a card of a suit different from the suit just led by oneself or one's partner.

SYNONYMS FOR switch

7 change, shift, alternation, substitution.

See synonyms for switch on Thesaurus.com

QUIZZES

QUIZ YOURSELF ON “THEIR,” “THERE,” AND “THEY’RE”

Are you aware how often people swap around “their,” “there,” and “they’re”? Prove you have more than a fair grasp over these commonly confused words.

Question 1 of 7

Which one of these commonly confused words can act as an adverb or a pronoun?

their

there

they're

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms for switch

asleep at the switch, Informal. failing to perform one's duty, missing an opportunity, etc., because of negligence or inattention: He lost the contract because he was asleep at the switch.

Origin of switch

1585–95; earlier swits, switz slender riding whip, flexible stick; compare Low German (Hanoverian) schwutsche long, thin stick

OTHER WORDS FROM switch

switch·a·ble, adjectiveswitcher, nounswitchlike, adjectiveun·switch·a·ble, adjective

un·switched, adjective

Words nearby switch

swiss roll, Swiss steak, Swiss tournament, Swissvale, Swit., switch, switchback, switchblade, switchboard, switch box, switch cane

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Example sentences from the Web for switch

Previously that miscreant switch had been identified in rice plants and was named “karma.”
The Environmental Headache in Your Shampoo - Issue 90: Something Green|Anastasia Bendebury & Michael Shilo DeLay|September 16, 2020|Nautilus
There’s a hardware switch to turn off the microphones completely, but that defeats one of the key functions of the device.
Amazon’s new fitness tracker listens to your voice to figure out your mood|Stan Horaczek|September 2, 2020|Popular Science
You don’t just flip a switch from dry enough to burn to not dry enough to burn.
What’s behind August 2020’s extreme weather? Climate change and bad luck|Carolyn Gramling|August 27, 2020|Science News
Cabana’s change in demographics exemplifies what could be a long-term switch from long-distance air travel to domestic road travel.
The New Camper Companies Redefining Road Travel|Alex Temblador|August 27, 2020|Outside Online

Their technique relies on a series of synthetic proteins that can be customized to create a variety of switches.
Scientists Used Protein Switches to Turn T-Cells Into Cancer-Fighting Guided Missiles|Edd Gent|August 24, 2020|Singularity Hub
However, that switch to potatoes occurred around the 19th Century.
I Ate Potato Pancakes Til I Plotzed|Emily Shire|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In a series of more than 20 tweets, Hatem admitted that he tried to get AQAP to switch allegiances from Zawahiri to Baghdadi.
Murder Vids Help ISIS Lure More Monsters|Thomas Joscelyn|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We drive back to Asadabad in silence, where we switch cars for security reasons and begin the six hour drive back home.
Heart of Darkness: Into Afghanistan’s Taliban Valley|Matt Trevithick, Daniel Seckman|November 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Michlin, who was looking for ideas for a new startup company, says he felt a lightbulb switch on over his head.
The Airbnb of Home-Cooked Meals|Itay Hod|November 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He said it would be wise to stop taking it, lest it turn on my “genetic light switch.”
Birth Control Made My Hair Fall Out, and I’m Not the Only One|Molly Oswaks|October 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
He lifted his head, looked around him, and was just going to switch off the light, when he noticed the open book on his table.
Bella Donna|Robert Hichens
Even as he spoke, Gray had found the switch, and the apartment of Kazmah became flooded with subdued light.
Dope|Sax Rohmer
She had forgotten to tell her mother of that fact—the safety of the closed receiving switch.
The Campfire Girls of Roselawn|Margaret Penrose
Delancy's hand shot out to the radio switch, cutting off the voice of the announcer.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various
A switch is furnished so that when desired the stops and expression levers may be cut off and left to be operated by hand.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building|George Laing Miller

British Dictionary definitions for switch

switch

/ (swɪtʃ) /

noun

a mechanical, electrical, electronic, or optical device for opening or closing a circuit or for diverting energy from one part of a circuit to another

a swift and usually sudden shift or change

an exchange or swap

a flexible rod or twig, used esp for punishment

the sharp movement or blow of such an instrument

a tress of false hair used to give added length or bulk to a woman's own hairstyle

the tassel-like tip of the tail of cattle and certain other animals

any of various card games in which the suit is changed during play

US and Canadian a railway siding

US and Canadian a railway point

Australian informal See switchboard

verb

to shift, change, turn aside, or change the direction of (something)

to exchange (places); replace (something by something else)the battalions switched fronts

mainly US and Canadian to transfer (rolling stock) from one railway track to another

(tr) to cause (an electric current) to start or stop flowing or to change its path by operating a switch

to swing or cause to swing, esp back and forth

(tr) to lash or whip with or as if with a switch

Derived forms of switch

switcher, nounswitchlike, adjective

Word Origin for switch

C16: perhaps from Middle Dutch swijch branch, twig

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

Idioms and Phrases with switch

switch

In addition to the idioms beginning with switch

switch off
switch on

also see:

asleep at the switch
bait and switch

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