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.

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

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.

Computers.

a device connecting others in a network, enabling communication among them by interrogating each received data packet for its source and destination and then routing it to the appropriate device in the network.Compare hub (def. 7).
Also called switch state·ment . (in a program or piece of code) a structure permitting a number of different actions as determined by the value of a particular expression.
Also called com·mand-line switch . an argument sent to a program when it is run from the command line rather than via a graphical user interface, and which modifies the function of the command.

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 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.

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.

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.

OTHER WORDS FOR switch

5 change, shift, alternation, substitution.

See synonyms for switch on Thesaurus.com

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Idioms about 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

First recorded in 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, adjectiveswitch·er, nounswitch·like, adjectiveun·switch·a·ble, adjective

un·switched, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use switch in a sentence

Soon afterward, Jarrell, the university’s president, released a statement saying the lab had been “planning for some time” to make the switch.
Hogan’s first batch of coronavirus tests from South Korea were flawed, never used|Steve Thompson|November 20, 2020|Washington Post
There are caregivers who don’t have the resources for that kind of switch.
Distance learning was a disaster. So I decided to teach my daughter myself.|Tracey Lewis-Giggetts|November 19, 2020|Washington Post
It’s almost as if Sucker Punch Studios had an on-off switch for visual upgrades, and they’ve been ready to push it this whole time.
‘Ghost of Tsushima’ sees the best kind of PlayStation 5 upgrade: transformative and free|Gene Park|November 12, 2020|Washington Post
The switch never garnered support from lawyers or legislators.
Maine Governor Won’t Fund Reforms for Public Defense Agency Without Accountability|by Samantha Hogan, The Maine Monitor|November 11, 2020|ProPublica

This is a big switch, one that may lead to compatibility issues for app-makers and connected devices.
What if Apple’s new Mac chips are trash?|rhhackettfortune|November 10, 2020|Fortune
They even switched off their location service—one of the main perks of the program.
Sisi Is Persecuting, Prosecuting, and Publicly Shaming Egypt’s Gays|Bel Trew|December 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Passengers were asked to make sure their phones and other devices were charged so that they could be switched on for inspection.
A Gift to the Jihadis: The Unseen Airport Security Threat|Clive Irving|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
One customer retooled a Nintendo Wii with its innards switched out for glued pennies.
The Insane $11 Billion Scam at Retailers’ Return Desks|M.L. Nestel|December 19, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Mixing meat and dairy is a kosher rule-breaker, so they switched the cheese for potatoes.
I Ate Potato Pancakes Til I Plotzed|Emily Shire|December 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Meet the outgoing Michigan Republican congressman who switched his vote and kept the government funded Thursday.
Quirky Reindeer Farmer Keeps Government Open for Christmas|Ben Jacobs|December 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
As the car rolled on toward Manhattan's northern boundary, the woman with the green eyes switched on the radio on the dash.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various
We switched paint jobs at Burkey's station, see, and rolling into town that dame you sent to ride with us switched on the radio.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various
The light was switched off, and Bud heard the doors pulled shut, and the rattle of the padlock and chain.
Cabin Fever|B. M. Bower
"Door left unlocked—the ignorant hound—Good thing I don't trust him too far—" Some one came fumbling in and switched on the light.
Cabin Fever|B. M. Bower
At the same moment the blinds in the dining-room were pulled down by the countess herself, and the lights switched off.
The Weight of the Crown|Fred M. White

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

Other 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

switch

OTHER WORDS FOR switch

Idioms about switch

Origin of switch

OTHER WORDS FROM switch

Words related to switch

How to use switch in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for switch

Derived forms of switch

Word Origin for switch

Other Idioms and Phrases with switch