1
as in veers
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 curves
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 bends
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
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of swerves
Yet whereas Taxi Driver ends in a sequence of redemptive carnage, First Reformed swerves in its last moments into a scene so ostentatiously at odds with everything coming before that accepting it at face value would seem to mean denying the film up to that point had anything serious to say.
—
Roy Scranton
august 20, Literary Hub, 20 Aug. 2025
Roy Scranton
august 20, Literary Hub, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swerves
Verb
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While Peters veers closer to a stock villain — the ubiquitous empowered dweeb, though those coding-sequence tattoo sleeves are a nice embellishment — Hasan Minhaj and Arturo Castro are appealing as Eve’s ENCOM associates.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Oct. 2025
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While the series veers more toward the action side of things, stealth is also incredibly important.—
George Yang,
Vulture,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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It's got a wicked 27-inch QHD screen that curves perfectly around your eyeballs, which feels like your games are wrapping you up.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
14 Oct. 2025
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In the example below, Ilkay Gundogan curves his run to prevent Alisson from passing back to Virgil van Dijk, while Victor Osimhen’s presence puts goalkeeper Alisson off passing to Ibrahima Konate or Dominik Szoboszlai.—
The Athletic UK Staff,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Uchis has built a reputation as a bilingual and genre-fluid artist who bends musical boundaries with ease.—
Isabela Raygoza,
Billboard,
16 Oct. 2025
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According to Einstein, massive objects shape the space around them, as their gravity bends space-time, curving paths of light rays near by.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Even in states whose policy deviates from the CDC, each pharmacy can set its own boundaries on who can be vaccinated, and individual pharmacists may fear liability for vaccinating pregnant customers, Groves said.—
Yasmin Tayag,
The Atlantic,
16 Sep. 2025
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The Uncut Gems star's ensemble deviates from his signature style, which typically includes oversize T-shirts, hoodies and shorts, as well as stylish sneakers.—
Charna Flam,
People.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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These arches pivot together around common springing points to create a 40-degree tilt in just 4 minutes.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Oct. 2025
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The Methodist church, a white wedding cake built in 1929, was a total loss; the town’s oldest commercial building, a grand colonnaded structure from 1924, looked like the Roman Forum, arches yawning around a central void.—
Dana Goodyear,
New Yorker,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Like one icicle falling from an alpine crag onto an unstable snow cornice below, a small slide rapidly turns into a thundering avalanche.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
19 Oct. 2025
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With its brilliant cast—Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Marty Feldman, Cloris Leachman, Teri Garr, Madeline Kahn—and incredibly funny script, Mel Brooks’s Young Frankenstein turns Mary Shelley’s classic story totally on its head.—
Emma Specter,
Vogue,
19 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In contrast to AirPods, these feature a sleek design that hooks over the ear and can be adjusted to ensure an extra secure grip.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
9 Oct. 2025
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Each episode hooks viewers with edge-of-your-seat action and builds to big, climactic moments.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But the tone swings between sour and sweet, grounded and silly, and the jokes run more broadly wacky than precise or original.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Oct. 2025
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Stacey might have the upper hand now, but Gizelle seems to have a knack for being there when the boomerang inevitably swings back.—
Shamira Ibrahim,
Vulture,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Swerves.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swerves. Accessed 24 Oct. 2025.
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