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Swab
//swɒb// name, noun, verb, slang
Definitions
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Noun
- 1 A small piece of soft, absorbent material, such as gauze, used to clean wounds, apply medicine, or take samples of body fluids. Often attached to a stick or wire to aid access.
- 2 cleaning implement consisting of absorbent material fastened to a handle; for cleaning floors wordnet
- 3 A sample taken with a swab (piece of absorbent material).
- 4 implement consisting of a small piece of cotton that is used to apply medication or cleanse a wound or obtain a specimen of a secretion wordnet
- 5 A piece of material used for cleaning or sampling other items like musical instruments or guns.
Show 3 more definitions
- 6 A mop, especially on a ship.
- 7 A sailor; a swabby. slang
"As for that swab, he's good and dead, he is."
- 8 A naval officer's epaulet. slang
Verb
- 1 To use a swab on something, or clean something with a swab. transitive
"swab the deck of a ship"
- 2 apply (usually a liquid) to a surface wordnet
- 3 wash with a swab or a mop wordnet
Etymology
Etymology 1
Mid 17th century (in the sense 'mop for cleaning the decks'): back-formation from Middle English swabber (“sailor detailed to swab decks”), from Middle Dutch zwabber, from a Germanic base meaning 'splash' or 'sway', also found as nautical German Schwabber and Volga German Schwabber ("scrubber, mop, swab")
Etymology 2
Mid 17th century (in the sense 'mop for cleaning the decks'): back-formation from Middle English swabber (“sailor detailed to swab decks”), from Middle Dutch zwabber, from a Germanic base meaning 'splash' or 'sway', also found as nautical German Schwabber and Volga German Schwabber ("scrubber, mop, swab")
See also for "swab"
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