1
a
: mop
especially
: a yarn mop
b(1)
: a wad of absorbent material usually wound around one end of a small stick and used especially for applying medication or for removing material from an area
(2)
: a specimen taken with a swab
c
: a sponge or cloth patch attached to a long handle and used to clean the bore of a firearm
swabbed; swabbing
1
: to clean with or as if with a swab
2
: to apply medication to with a swab
swabbed the wound with iodine
Examples of swab in a Sentence
Noun
Use a cotton swab dipped in alcohol to disinfect the area.
The doctor took a throat swab and sent it to the lab.
Verb
The nurse swabbed the cut with a disinfectant.
Recent Examples on the Web
Craig Shoup, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Detectives submitted one of the swabs that was collected from the kitchen closet floor to the Rapid DNA Kiosk at New London Police Department on April 18.
—Kellie Love, Hartford Courant, 30 Apr. 2025
Amy McGorry, FOXNews.com, 26 June 2025
Doctors can make a definitive diagnosis with a blood test or by swabbing a patients’ nose or throat.
—Liz Szabo, NBC news, 29 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for swab
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Noun
The public may be aware of Ancestry.com or 23 and Me, where families can learn about their lineage through a DNA swab.
—Craig Shoup, The Tennessean, 2 July 2025
Detectives submitted one of the swabs that was collected from the kitchen closet floor to the Rapid DNA Kiosk at New London Police Department on April 18.
—Kellie Love, Hartford Courant, 30 Apr. 2025
Verb
In this recent study, researchers in China analyzed wax swabbed from the ear canals of 209 participants, 108 of whom had been diagnosed with Parkinson’s.
—Amy McGorry, FOXNews.com, 26 June 2025
Doctors can make a definitive diagnosis with a blood test or by swabbing a patients’ nose or throat.
—Liz Szabo, NBC news, 29 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for swab
Cite this Entry
“Swab.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/swab. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
swab
1 of 2 noun1
b
: a wad of absorbent material usually wound around one end of a small stick and used especially for applying medicine or for removing material (as from a wound)
also
: a sample taken with a swab
2
: sailor
swab
2 of 2 verb
swabbed; swabbing
: to use a swab on
Medical Definition
swab
1 of 2 noun1
: a wad of absorbent material usually wound around one end of a small stick and used for applying medication or for removing material from an area
2
: a specimen taken with a swab
a throat swab
swab
2 of 2 transitive verb
swabbed; swabbing
: to apply medication to with a swab
swabbed the wound with iodine
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