Synonyms of swerves

swerves

verb

present tense third-person singular of swerve

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

• veers
• turns
• cuts
• curves
• wanders
• circles
• bows
• zigs
• zags
• sweeps
• breaks
• bends
• weaves
• arches
• yaws
• twists
• skews
• pivots
• sheers
• curls
• rounds
• wheels
• loops
• zigzags
• arcs
• spirals
• deviates
• hooks
• winds
• slews
• coils
• crooks
• strays
• about-faces
• wavers

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• straightens

2

as in curves

to turn away from a straight line or course

the bike path gently swerves to the right

Synonyms & Similar Words

• curves
• sweeps
• turns
• bends
• trends
• bows
• rounds
• falls off
• winds
• arches
• wheels
• loops
• arcs
• hooks
• curls
• circles
• spirals
• veers
• crooks
• curlicues
• deviates
• coils
• twists

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• straightens

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

• bends
• arches
• hooks
• curves
• turns
• twists
• bows
• veers
• curls
• crooks
• waves
• deflects
• swirls
• reflects
• weaves
• rounds
• diverts
• inflects
• arcs
• meanders
• loops
• spirals
• inclines
• entwines
• warps
• coils
• twines
• slopes
• winds
• enrolls
• kinks
• incurves
• dents
• incurvates
• dimples
• declines

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• straightens
• unbends
• uncurls

4

as in deviates

to change one's course or direction

the hurricane had been following the coastline before it swerved and headed inland

Synonyms & Similar Words

• deviates
• turns
• swings
• veers
• diverges
• detours
• wheels
• turns off
• zigzags
• sheers
• tacks
• turns back
• doubles (back)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of swerves

Surveillance video obtained by ABC7 New York shows two men fighting in the street before gunshots ring out, and a vehicle swerves around the moped, appearing to flee the scene. — Rebecca White, New York Daily News, 23 Aug. 2026

The artist adopts a schizoid persona, with multiple voices flowing out of him, and swerves between lucid social criticism—about the history of slavery or of higher education—and total gibberish. — Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026

The elegant staging tries to compensate, but the performers have to rely a little too heavily on their own charms to make up the difference in a play that swerves unexpectedly at the end into a cutesy fairy tale. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2026

At times comical, each of these stories swerves and plunges deep into dark truths of human nature. — Literary Hub, 9 June 2026

And then, quite predictably, Hacks swerves away from that pain at the last second. — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 29 May 2026

The one who swerves first loses face but survives. — Frank Holmes, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026

The conversation swerves to the inevitable topic of AI and art. — Erin Entrada Kelly, PEOPLE, 11 May 2026

As the season swerves into Lap 2, let’s see who’s doing better (and worse) lately. — Levi Weaver, New York Times, 4 May 2026