swathe
1 Americanverb (used with object)
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to wrap, bind, or swaddle with bands of some material; wrap up closely or fully.
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to bandage.
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to enfold or envelop, as wrappings do.
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to wrap (cloth, rope, etc.) around something.
noun
noun
verb
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to bandage (a wound, limb, etc), esp completely
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to wrap a band, garment, etc, around, esp so as to cover completely; swaddle
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to envelop
noun
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a bandage or wrapping
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a variant spelling of swath
Other Word Forms
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."
Vocabulary lists containing swathe
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Beowulf
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Met Office yellow thunderstorm warning covers a large swathe of England and Wales.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
It ended with those same players applauding a large swathe of empty seats, some vacating as early as the 49th minute when Michael Kayode put The Bees 3-0 up.
From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026
Millions of Europeans will contemplate the sky in awe on Wednesday as a rare total solar eclipse crosses part of the continent and plunges a swathe of Spain into eerie daytime darkness.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
During their early years, the band appealed to a narrow swathe of teens and young adults.
From Salon ● Aug. 5, 2026
The first four were wrong, and she slashed through my answers with a broad swathe of bright red ink.
From "The Wednesday Wars" by Gary D. Schmidt
Because they cannot imagine an autumn in which they don't pause to admire the ginkgo at its finest, swathed in a feathery coat of gold.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Schools were shuttered as smoke swathed the city in Nevada, near the California border, home to around 280,000 people.
From Barron's ● Aug. 24, 2026
One features sunrise-pastel walls and an angelic ceiling mural, and another is swathed in bluish gray and gold marble print paper on the walls and ceiling.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 15, 2025
A priest took the documents and lightly tapped them against the statue, which was swathed in flowers and tucked behind three doorways framed in gold leaf carvings of Hindu gods.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2025
Still far away, forty miles at least, they saw Mount Doom, its feet founded in ashen ruin, its huge cone rising to a great height, where its reeking head was swathed in cloud.
From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Masi speculates Comet Pons-Brooks’s horseshoe shape may result from shadows cast by the dusty “coma” swathing the object after the outburst.
From Scientific American ● Jul. 26, 2023
A later segment is dedicated to the art nouveau dancer Marie Louise Fuller and her efforts “to disappear inside the rigors and extravagance of her work” by swathing herself in otherworldly costumes.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 20, 2023
A cascade of blonde frames her face, flowing seamlessly into the airy tunics she wears, each a slightly grander version of those swathing her staff.
From Salon ● Aug. 18, 2021
Junya Watanabe played with circular shapes and couture swathing in big black and white polka dots, swirls and — little houses?
From New York Times ● Oct. 1, 2017
Sleep enveloped him like the swathing mirages that were wrestling with the brilliance of the lagoon.
From "Lord of the Flies" by William Golding
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
