as in nerd
a person slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits
every time he begged off a night at the pub—saying he had to study—his mates teased him for being a swot
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Recent Examples of swot
Ruby Tandoh, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
The Oxbridge and Ivy League colleges traditionally had disparaging terms for students who worked too hard and devoted themselves too diligently to learning: swot in England, grind in the United States.
—John McIntyre, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2023
So, swot up, then delegate.
—Barnaby Lashbrooke, Forbes, 4 May 2021
The Economist, 13 June 2020
Greenblatt might want to have a chinwag with some of his colleagues in the history department and swot up the biography of someone like Wisconsin’s Robert La Follette, a progressive populist politician perhaps more to his liking.
—Alex Beam, BostonGlobe.com, 2 May 2018
Noun
Nobody talked about the furtive ambition of the swots.
—Ruby Tandoh, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
The Oxbridge and Ivy League colleges traditionally had disparaging terms for students who worked too hard and devoted themselves too diligently to learning: swot in England, grind in the United States.
—John McIntyre, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2023
So, swot up, then delegate.
—Barnaby Lashbrooke, Forbes, 4 May 2021
Verb
Yamada Jun, the IT expert, became the CEO and travelled to Germany to swot up on renewables.
—The Economist, 13 June 2020
Greenblatt might want to have a chinwag with some of his colleagues in the history department and swot up the biography of someone like Wisconsin’s Robert La Follette, a progressive populist politician perhaps more to his liking.
—Alex Beam, BostonGlobe.com, 2 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swot
Noun
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In 2026, nerds who love storytelling aren’t just consuming and collecting VHS culture.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
16 Apr. 2026
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And every film nerd knows that the production’s depravity and delirium almost surpasses the film’s—Apocalypse Now’s Wikipedia page is as wild as the film itself.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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At the center of the standoff that has stretched throughout the week is Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which permits the CIA, National Security Agency, FBI and other agencies to collect and analyze vast amounts of overseas communications without a warrant.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Apr. 2026
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The water will be collected and analyzed in order to determine the uranium concentration.—
Dillon Thomas,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Segel makes Dan a bitterly perceptive geek, out of his depth but eager to prove himself, while Weaving invests Lisa with a snappishness that only camouflages her pain.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
15 Mar. 2026
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Such comes with a 12-game win streak and computer numbers that make even the geeks party on Broadway.—
Noah White,
Miami Herald,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The experiment’s main goal is to deduce the smallest amount of energy required to produce a neutrino — its resting mass.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
8 Apr. 2026
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Law enforcement arrived soon after and deduced the shot must have come from outside, potentially from an area 30 yards away where a firearm-sniffing dog alerted the following day.—
Alex Wigglesworth,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But researchers who study fertility trends say the decline is driven by forces that have little to do with contraception access and that restricting it is unlikely to produce more births.—
Dr. Céline Gounder,
CBS News,
16 Apr. 2026
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Duvick, senior research professor in French, has been studying the account books of Joseph Bailly (1774-1835) since 2005.—
Philip Potempa,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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When Perez, a 2nd District police councilor, found out that Insight Hospital and Medical Care Center fell victim to a data breach between August and September last year, he was concerned for his constituents.—
Marissa Sulek,
CBS News,
15 Apr. 2026
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The Dodgers look forward to finding out.—
Katie Woo,
New York Times,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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For more of my favorite plastic-free kitchen essentials, keep reading.—
Alicia Geigel,
Southern Living,
18 Apr. 2026
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Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content.—
Jane Lytvynenko,
NBC news,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Robert enjoys learning fun facts about different creatures and can talk about them with excitement and curiosity.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
15 Apr. 2026
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Lemont’s Gabriela Kuruc grew up learning the game of soccer through some tough, competitive family games with her older cousins.—
Steve Millar,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Swot.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swot. Accessed 21 Apr. 2026.
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