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
Ellis said the department's preliminary investigation indicates that a man traveling eastbound on Lower River Road swerved to get out of the way of a vehicle attempting to pull out of a nearby driveway, striking another car head-on.
—
Lillian Metzmeier, Louisville Courier Journal, 9 Feb. 2026
Duprey swerved and slid under a vehicle.
—Alexa Herrera, CBS News, 6 Feb. 2026
When the victim crossed the street to talk with him, Butera swerved and hit him with the car, the affidavit states.
—Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 6 Feb. 2026
The semi Beishekeev was driving swerved into the westbound lane and collided with a van driven by Donald Stipp, 55, of Portland.
—Kayla Dwyer, IndyStar, 5 Feb. 2026
According to police and fire officials, the driver struck the bicyclist about a block from the store, then swerved onto the sidewalk and went through the glass windows of the market, coming to a stop in the bakery.
—City News Service, Daily News, 5 Feb. 2026
In 1958, Neihardt swerved his blue Studebaker to avoid a truck and collided head-on into an oncoming car.
—Shannon Taggart, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2026
Rich kids on scooters swerved aggressively around the gillagers, taunting them.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
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
Lillian Metzmeier, Louisville Courier Journal, 9 Feb. 2026
Duprey swerved and slid under a vehicle.
—Alexa Herrera, CBS News, 6 Feb. 2026
When the victim crossed the street to talk with him, Butera swerved and hit him with the car, the affidavit states.
—Meredith Colias-Pete, Chicago Tribune, 6 Feb. 2026
The semi Beishekeev was driving swerved into the westbound lane and collided with a van driven by Donald Stipp, 55, of Portland.
—Kayla Dwyer, IndyStar, 5 Feb. 2026
According to police and fire officials, the driver struck the bicyclist about a block from the store, then swerved onto the sidewalk and went through the glass windows of the market, coming to a stop in the bakery.
—City News Service, Daily News, 5 Feb. 2026
In 1958, Neihardt swerved his blue Studebaker to avoid a truck and collided head-on into an oncoming car.
—Shannon Taggart, Artforum, 1 Feb. 2026
Rich kids on scooters swerved aggressively around the gillagers, taunting them.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swerved
Verb
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An early sign of the growing hostility in the race came in January when podcasters Bowen Yang and Matt Rogers veered into the Texas primary.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
10 Feb. 2026
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Police vans behind a temporary metal fence secured the road to the athletes’ village, but the protesters veered away, continuing their apparent route toward the Santagiulia venue.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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By tracking how those signals curved through Jupiter’s atmosphere, the team created detailed maps of temperature and density across the planet.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
5 Feb. 2026
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Hallie Henley Sims inherited her own grandmother’s curved back settee and chose to keep the original orange velvet upholstery intact.—
Sarah Lyon,
Southern Living,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Back on the highway, the rearview mirror showed the clouds had lifted, the waters were still, and a rainbow had arched across the sky.—
Marlise Kast-Myers,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Feb. 2026
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Engage your core so that your back is flat (not arched or rounded).—
Jenny McCoy,
Outside,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Yet Kurnos said that Scripps has deviated from its peers with other moves, such as growing Scripps Sports with local media rights.—
Lillian Rizzo,
CNBC,
11 Feb. 2026
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Over the past few years, San Jose has deviated from the Housing First model by investing more money into interim housing options as an alternative to living on the streets.—
Devan Patel,
Mercury News,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The toys can also be taken on the go and hooked onto backpacks or purses with a keychain clip.—
Julia Gomez,
USA Today,
11 Feb. 2026
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Thirteen seconds into her run, Lindsey hooked a gate.—
Outside,
Outside,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Except Fresno State issued a coach’s challenge, claiming Green had swung his arm and hit his defender in the neck.—
Mark Zeigler,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Latino voters swung rightward in 2024.—
Jonathan Chait,
The Atlantic,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Their heads are bowed, their fingers nimbly working gargantuan pale orbs of mochi.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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The starting 11 for Woodrow Wilson soccer team bowed their heads during a moment of silence for their slain teammate Wornan Padilla Garcia before their game against the Mesquite Poteet Pirates, February 6, 2026.—
Dallas Morning News,
Dallas Morning News,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The only way Seattle could’ve lost this game is if Darnold turned into a pumpkin and threw multiple interceptions.—
Chris Branch,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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Around 30 Emirati companies were listed as participants, but none showed up; the exhibition space allocated to EDGE Group — one of Abu Dhabi’s biggest arms makers — was turned into a coffee shop.—
Mohammed Sergie,
semafor.com,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Swerved.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swerved. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
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