swerve
Audio Help [swurv] Pronunciation Key, verb, swerved, swerv·ing, noun
Audio Help [swurv] Pronunciation Key, verb, swerved, swerv·ing, noun –verb (used without object)
–verb (used with object)
–noun
| 1. | to turn aside abruptly in movement or direction; deviate suddenly from the straight or direct course. |
| 2. | to cause to turn aside: Nothing could swerve him. |
| 3. | an act of swerving; turning aside. |
[Origin: 1175–1225; ME swerven (v.); OE sweorfan to rub, file; c. D zwerven to rove, OHG swerban, ON sverfa to file, Goth afswairban to wipe off
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] | Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
swerve
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| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| swerve
Audio Help (swûrv) Pronunciation Key
tr. & intr.v. swerved, swerv·ing, swerves To turn aside or be turned aside from a straight course. n. The act of swerving. [Middle English swerven, from Old English sweorfan, to rub, scour.] Synonyms: These verbs mean to turn away from a straight or prescribed course: a gaze that never swerved; won't depart from family traditions; deviated from the original plan; digressed from the main topic; opinions that diverged; strays from the truth; a conversation that veered away from sensitive issues. |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
swerve
c.1225, "to depart, make off;" c.1330, "to turn aside, deviate from a straight course," probably from O.E. sweorfan "to rub, scour, file" (but sense development is difficult to trace), from P.Gmc. *swerbanan (cf O.N. sverfa "to scour, file," O.S. swebran "to wipe off"), from PIE base *swerbh-. Cognate words in other Gmc. languages (cf. O.Fris. swerva "to creep," M.Du. swerven "to rove, stray") suggests the sense of "go off, turn aside" may have existed in O.E., though unrecorded. The noun is recorded from 1741.
| Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper |
| swerve | |
noun | |
| 1. | the act of turning aside suddenly |
| 2. | an erratic deflection from an intended course [syn: yaw] |
verb | |
| 1. | turn sharply; change direction abruptly; "The car cut to the left at the intersection"; "The motorbike veered to the right" |
| WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University. |
swerve [swəːv] verb
to turn away (from a line or course), especially quickly
Example: The car driver swerved to avoid the dog; She never swerved from her purpose.
swerve [swəːv] nounExample: The car driver swerved to avoid the dog; She never swerved from her purpose.
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an act of swerving
Example: The sudden swerve rocked the passengers in their seats.
Example: The sudden swerve rocked the passengers in their seats.
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
Swerve
Swarf\, v. i. [Cf. Swerve.] To grow languid; to faint. [Scot.] "To swarf for very hunger." --Sir W. Scott.| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
Swerve
Swarf\, n. [Cf. Swerve.] The grit worn away from grindstones in grinding cutlery wet. [Prov. Eng.]| Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc. |
SWERVE
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