1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

swab 1 of 2

noun

ˈswäb How to pronounce swab (audio)
Definition of swabnext
as in sailor
one who operates or navigates a seagoing vessel old swabs swapping sea stories as they spend their last days in the veterans' home

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

swab

2 of 2

verb

as in to wipe

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of swab
Noun
What Michael didn’t say was that, sometime after Star’s hospital visit, the kids’ nose swabs had come back negative for measles. — Ruby Cramer, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026 Done with a cheek swab, blood draw or saliva sample, this testing mainly looks at liver enzymes that affect how the body metabolizes medicines. — Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
Verb
Following the interview, the Connecticut State Police arrived to swab his hands for gunshot residue. — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 18 July 2026 In the absence of active lesions to swab for HSV itself, tests must evaluate the immune response to the virus in a patient’s blood, typically by screening for the immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody. — Lauren Schneider, Scientific American, 9 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for swab
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swab
  1. sailor
  2. wipe
  3. mariner
  4. scrub
  5. navigator
  6. brush
  7. rinse
  8. mop
Noun
  • During the town hall, Caudle told a sailor who was evacuated from Bahrain that officials are working on retrieving belongings that were left behind because the Navy does not have imminent plans to return to the same level of footprint on the base.
    — Eleanor Watson, CBS News, 21 Sep. 2026
  • The one that Northrop Grumman and artificial intelligence and quantum tech firm SandboxAQ have developed is similar to a trick that's used by sailors.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 20 Sep. 2026
Definition of sailor
Verb
  • Jawahar also tried to coach a victim to give a favorable statement to authorities and sought to have his sister wipe his iPhone, prosecutors said.
    — Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The Winny sneakers have also proved easy to wipe clean, pleasantly lightweight, and flexible enough to move with me without feeling flimsy.
    — Annie Blackman, InStyle, 12 Sep. 2026
Definition of wipe
Noun
  • Officials said a good Samaritan vessel also stepped in, rescuing the 15-year-old survivor and recovering the bodies of the two deceased mariners from the water.
    — Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Every shipping container that comes through the port creates jobs for warehouse workers, mechanics, merchant mariners, truck drivers and community members across the East Bay, Simon said.
    — Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of mariner
Verb
  • Surfaces were scrubbed down, while dishes were washed and categorized into what Voraotsady had brought and what belonged to OK YAKI.
    — Leah Asmelash, CNN Money, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Focus on crevices and edges where grease and debris tend to accumulate, but avoid scrubbing too harshly.
    — Jamie Cuccinelli, Martha Stewart, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of scrub
Noun
  • In that moment, the coach’s role transformed from tactical advisor to emergency navigator.
    — Andrew Rice, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Reportedly, the artificial intelligence serves as both the observational eyes and the active navigator throughout the procedure by establishing a continuous feedback loop between real-time ultrasound image processing and physical surgical control.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of navigator
Verb
  • Each whisker is packed with sensitive nerve endings at its base that detect tiny deflections, vibrations, and pressure changes when brushing against surfaces.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026
  • When asked if the issues was personnel, in-experience, technique, assignment, discomfort, Tabor, who has been a special teams coordinator for five NFL teams over a 15-year period, brushed off the question.
    — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of brush
Verb
  • Over and over, my father rinsed the rice, drained the water, then filled the pot again.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 Sep. 2026
  • The gentle, foaming elixir feels soft on skin, rinsing away dirt and makeup while hydrating and coddling with flaxseed oil.
    — Elizabeth Siegel, Allure, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of rinse
Verb
  • The women went to the bathroom to mop the bottoms of their eyes, where their makeup was smeared from crying.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026
  • Its roller has 24 water ports that spin at 270 rpm, or nine times per second, to mop your floors up.
    — George Yang, PC Magazine, 9 July 2026
Definition of mop

Browse Nearby Words

svelteness
swab
swabbed
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Swab.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swab. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compendious

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All