swipe

1 of 2

noun

ˈswīp 

plural swipes

1

a

: a strong sweeping blow

a swipe of a paw

… he took a swipe at the ball before it stopped moving, a two stroke penalty.

—Ken Fidlin

b

: a sliding gesture (as across the touch screen of a mobile device)

In this day and age, with information available at the push of a button or a swipe, Avdeev's situation is remarkable and rare.

—Christopher Miller

Vividly colored orbs appear from time to time, sometimes slowly, often in a mad rush, and seemingly at random. You can move them around with a finger swipe …

—David Price

2

: a sharp often critical remark

took a parting swipe at management

Below the picture, the text took a swipe at Perdue's claims …

—Thomas Whiteside

swipe

2 of 2

verb

swiped; swiping; swipes

intransitive verb

1

: to strike or move with a sweeping motion

Among carnivores like the great cats, wolves and hyenas, cubs pretend to capture prey: stalking, pouncing, biting, swiping at objects with claws extended.

—Natalie Angier

2

: to operate something (such as a function on a mobile device) by sliding one's finger while pressing against a touch screen

On the plus side, it does come with extra large icons on the home screen, and a button bar that you swipe up from the bottom for easy access to video tutorials, troubleshooting tools and 24/7 phone support.

—Jennifer Jolly

transitive verb

1

: to strike or wipe (something or someone) with a sweeping motion

Pallone mimicked Rose's gestures in rebuttal—and, perhaps inadvertently, swiped Rose on the cheek near his left eye.

—Steve Wulf

One model boasted a small rectangular "rest" that kept the head from touching the counter when it was laid down and also sported a useful notch for swiping the rim of a jar or bowl.

—Lisa McManus

2

: to activate or control (something) with a swiping gesture

Tinder allows users to swipe their phone screen to the right when they see a picture of someone they like. …

—The Mercury (South Africa)

3

: steal, pilfer

In a jailhouse interview in Russia, a former uranium worker explains why he swiped nuclear material to sell: He needed money for a new fridge and stove.

—David Corn

4

: to slide (a card with a magnetic strip or bar code) through a slot in a reading device so that information contained in the strip or code can be processed (as in making a purchase)

Instead of swiping your credit card, or inserting its chip to complete the payment process, contactless technology lets you make a purchase by placing or hovering your card or phone near a payment terminal, a.k.a. the credit card machine.

—Geoffrey Morrison

Synonyms

Noun

• slap
• blow
• punch
• hit
• knock
• thump
• stroke
• poke
• lick
• whack
• thud
• smack
• pound
• slam
• spank
• bang
• beat
• clip
• switch

Verb

• bump
• slam
• bang
• collide
• smash
• knock
• hit
• ram

Examples of swipe in a Sentence

Noun

She took a swipe at her former company in her latest column.

a swipe of the cat's paw

Verb

The cat swiped the dog across the nose.

They swiped some candy from the store.

The cashier swiped the credit card and gave it back to me.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Credit card fees, which range from, on average, 2% to 4% of the transaction, are assessed with every swipe, according to Doug Kantor with the Merchants Payments Coalition (MPC). —Peter Burke, FOXNews.com, 29 June 2025

Where Black Honey adds oomph with every swipe, Nude Honey is the subtler counterpart that enhances what’s already there. —Claire Sullivan, Footwear News, 20 June 2025

Verb

Artificial intelligence is swiping jobs from new graduates. —Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 28 June 2025

After applying your base color of choice—something neutral—swipe a pop of color over the top one-third of your nail, all the way to your nail tip. —Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 28 June 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

probably alteration of sweep

First Known Use

Noun

1788, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb

circa 1825, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing swipe

• swipe card
• take a swipe at

Rhymes for swipe

• gripe
• hype
• lipe
• pipe
• ripe
• sipe
• skype
• snipe
• stipe
• stripe
• strype
• tripe

Kids Definition

swipe

1 of 2 verb

ˈswīp 

swiped; swiping

1

a

: to strike or wipe with a sweeping motion

b

: to operate something (such as a function on a mobile device) by sliding one's finger while pressing against a touch screen

2

: pilfer

3

: to slide (a card with a magnetic strip or bar code) through a slot in a reading device so that information stored on the strip can be processed (as in making a purchase)

swipe

2 of 2 noun

1

: a strong sweeping blow

2

: a sliding gesture (as across the touch screen of a mobile device)