1
as in veered
to depart abruptly from a straight line or course
the car swerved sharply to avoid the squirrel in the road
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in curved
to turn away from a straight line or course
the bike path gently swerves to the right
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in arched
to cause to turn away from a straight line
a dog dashed out in front of me and made me swerve my bike to one side of the bike path
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in deviated
to change one's course or direction
the hurricane had been following the coastline before it swerved and headed inland
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of swerved
After a Tesla in Full Self-Driving mode suddenly swerved off of a busy highway and almost straight into a ditch, the owner of the vehicle praised the driving technology to high heaven for supposedly saving his skin.
—
Frank Landymore, Futurism, 8 Jan. 2026
During the pursuit, the vehicle swerved all across four lanes of travel on North Telegraph Road at speeds ranging from 20 mph to 70 mph, the sheriff's office said.
—Paula Wethington, CBS News, 8 Jan. 2026
He was accused of driving recklessly — speeding and passing in a no-passing zone — when a motorist swerved to avoid Lacy and crashed into another vehicle.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 2 Jan. 2026
When Eba shuffled back to the left, Giles swerved again.
—Kelso Harper, Scientific American, 16 Dec. 2025
The pickup had swerved from the street and hit a first-floor apartment.
—Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Dec. 2025
After the chase started, Martinez swerved to avoid the collision ICE agents wanted, Davis said.
—Julia Coin
november 26, Charlotte Observer, 26 Nov. 2025
The Raiders took Set 4, 25-18, thanks to a missile off the hand of Raiders junior middle blocker Leila Colvin swerved through the Storm’s block to send Cretin-Derham Hall through to the Class 3A semifinals.
—Andrew Cornelius, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025
The Newcastle winger swerved in and out, with Diouf’s pressure half-hearted, and scored his second goal of the season.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
Frank Landymore, Futurism, 8 Jan. 2026
During the pursuit, the vehicle swerved all across four lanes of travel on North Telegraph Road at speeds ranging from 20 mph to 70 mph, the sheriff's office said.
—Paula Wethington, CBS News, 8 Jan. 2026
He was accused of driving recklessly — speeding and passing in a no-passing zone — when a motorist swerved to avoid Lacy and crashed into another vehicle.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 2 Jan. 2026
When Eba shuffled back to the left, Giles swerved again.
—Kelso Harper, Scientific American, 16 Dec. 2025
The pickup had swerved from the street and hit a first-floor apartment.
—Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Dec. 2025
After the chase started, Martinez swerved to avoid the collision ICE agents wanted, Davis said.
—Julia Coin
november 26, Charlotte Observer, 26 Nov. 2025
The Raiders took Set 4, 25-18, thanks to a missile off the hand of Raiders junior middle blocker Leila Colvin swerved through the Storm’s block to send Cretin-Derham Hall through to the Class 3A semifinals.
—Andrew Cornelius, Twin Cities, 6 Nov. 2025
The Newcastle winger swerved in and out, with Diouf’s pressure half-hearted, and scored his second goal of the season.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swerved
Verb
-
Roughly only a dozen of the 94 features and episodic pilots have distributors coming into the festival, and whereas last year veered indie, 2026 is more well-rounded with genre films, sobering indies, commercial comedies, and international gems.—
Brian Welk,
IndieWire,
20 Jan. 2026
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Trump repeatedly veered far from topics of policy or politics.—
Brian Bennett,
Time,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Fashion lovers, celebrities, and stylists alike are fans of this polished shoulder bag, thanks to its durable leather, curved top handle, and flat base.—
Cortne Bonilla,
Vogue,
15 Dec. 2025
-
Additive manufacturing allows load-bearing structures to follow curved, organic geometries dictated by optimization algorithms rather than the straight ribs and stringers of traditional airframes.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Long, arched hallways lead to the guest rooms, restaurants, castle-like lounge spaces, and even an ancient cloister from the former monastery.—
Hannah Chubb,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 Jan. 2026
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Your chest should be upright and your torso should be slightly forward so that your back is flat and not arched or rounded forward.—
Jenny McCoy,
SELF,
3 Dec. 2025
Verb
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According to internal reports obtained by The Times, federal cleanup repeatedly deviated from cleanup protocols, likely spreading contamination in the process.—
Tony Briscoe,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Jan. 2026
-
Travis Scott has deviated very little from drab colors on his Air Jordan 1s.—
Ian Servantes,
Footwear News,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The first season’s mix of Southern charm, scandal and murder mystery kept viewers hooked — and showcased plenty of local scenery.—
Evan Moore,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Jan. 2026
-
The thrill and greatness of one player hooked him.—
Joe Rexrode,
New York Times,
16 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Minnesota swung that deal for Dillingham as a creative way to get around the team-building restrictions of the aprons.—
Bryan Toporek,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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As shippers frontloaded their goods to get ahead of import taxes, cargo volumes swung high and low.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Earlier this month, X bowed to pressure and stopped the image tool from editing photos of real people after a backlash around the world to edits of women in revealing clothing.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Phelan grunted as his rod bowed.—
Bryan Hendricks,
Arkansas Online,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
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For everyone other than the Hoosiers and Hurricanes, the page had been turned along with the calendar.—
Kirk Kenney,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Jan. 2026
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The innocent girl turned jaded seductress, peeling off her sheer black lingerie to pose for the camera.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Swerved.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swerved. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
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