swath

noun

ˈswäth 

ˈswȯth

variants or swathe

ˈswät͟h 

ˈswȯt͟h,

ˈswāt͟h 

1

a

: a row of cut grain or grass left by a scythe or mowing machine

b

: the sweep of a scythe or a machine in mowing or the path cut in one course

2

: a long broad strip or belt

3

: a stroke of or as if of a scythe

4

: a space devastated as if by a scythe

Examples of swath in a Sentence

An aerial view of the countryside shows wide swathes of green.

He cut a swath through the field with his scythe.

Recent Examples on the Web

Rainstorms that started on Tuesday and continued overnight caused flooding in a wide swath of southern and eastern Spain, stretching from Malaga to Valencia. —Joseph Wilson and Teresa Medrano, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2024

Farther west, red flag warnings are active in the Texas panhandle as well as a swath covering eastern Colorado, northwestern Kansas, southern Nebraska and southwestern Iowa. —Chad Murphy, The Enquirer, 30 Oct. 2024

Created in 2009 to assist the city of Denver its elections, the company expanded tenfold in 2020 when large swaths of the country moved to mail-in voting as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. —Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 29 Oct. 2024

The focus group participants represented a broad swath of the electorate, with some favoring Republican candidates, and others Democrats. —Kff Health News, The Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English swæth footstep, trace; akin to Middle High German swade swath

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

swath

noun

ˈswäth 

ˈswȯth

variants or swathe

ˈswät͟h 

ˈswȯt͟h,

ˈswāt͟h

1

a

: the sweep of a scythe or machine in mowing or the path cut in one course

b

: a row of cut grain or grass

2

: a long broad strip or belt

3

: a space destroyed as if by a mowing machine