How to Use sweep in a Sentence

sweep

1 of 2 verb
  • The limo swept up to the door.
  • I need to sweep the kitchen.
  • She swept the books off the desk.
  • A storm swept across the plains.
  • He swept the crumbs from the table.
  • He swept the dirt off the driveway.
  • He swept the curtains aside.
  • Fires swept through the forest.
  • Are you finished sweeping the porch?
  • She proudly swept into the room.
  • His big splash swept most of the petals to the outside of the pool.
    Kimberlee Speakman, Peoplemag, 3 Mar. 2024
  • The news comes as the tour sweeps through the US, launching in March in Arizona.
    Indianapolis Star, The Enquirer, 3 Aug. 2023
  • Female artists swept the Big Four awards for the third time in the past five years.
    Paul Grein, Billboard, 5 Feb. 2024
  • That war began when the Houthis swept into Sanaa in 2014.
    Jon Gambrell, The Christian Science Monitor, 12 Jan. 2024
  • The guests cheered as Alex, dressed in a sharp white tux, swept her up in a hug, spinning her four times in the air.
    Christina Zdanowicz, CNN, 12 Oct. 2023
  • On March 31, an EF3 tornado swept through the same area.
    Paige Eichkorn, Arkansas Online, 8 Sep. 2023
  • The city swept her as recently as last week on Front Street.
    Theresa Clift, Sacramento Bee, 6 Feb. 2024
  • Long dresses would often extend to the floor, and even sweep along it.
    Estrella Albendea, Vogue, 7 Dec. 2023
  • Her hair sweeps past her curves with the help of extensions, strictly in shades of blonde, black, and brunette.
    Devon Abelman, Allure, 25 Oct. 2023
  • But that wasn’t the reason they were swept by the Diamondbacks.
    Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2023
  • On the latter list, Swift swept the top three, the biggest haul from No. 1 on down until this week.
    Kevin Rutherford, Billboard, 21 Sep. 2023
  • After the Guardians were swept by the Astros Wednesday to complete a 2-4 trip, that goal seems a long way away.
    Paul Hoynes, cleveland, 2 Aug. 2023
  • In the last days of the 1400s, a terrible epidemic swept through Europe.
    WIRED, 22 Sep. 2023
  • They were swept in the first round by the Las Vegas Aces, who went on to win a second straight championship.
    Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 26 Jan. 2024
  • Bull elk antlers consist of a long, sweeping main beam that arches over the bull’s back and toward its rump.
    Scott Bestul, Field & Stream, 28 Sep. 2023
  • Her damp hair, though swept back, looks extension-free.
    Jackie Fields, Peoplemag, 27 Dec. 2023
  • The Nets went 43-32 before getting swept in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.
    Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 19 Feb. 2024
  • The 76ers, essentially locked into the third seed, wanted to avoid being swept by the Celtics at all costs.
    Gary Washburn, BostonGlobe.com, 5 Apr. 2023
  • The larger problem for Mounk’s narrative is that many of the ideas that swept onto the scene in 2020 have ebbed just as quickly in the months and years since.
    Samuel Clowes Huneke, The New Republic, 26 Oct. 2023
  • Meanwhile, factory farms, which were newish in 1975, have swept the globe.
    Elizabeth Barber, The New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2023
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sweep

2 of 2 noun
  • Mrs. Griswold has been a teacher for so long that the sweep of her influence extends across three generations of the townspeople.
  • Maybe there's a No. 8 seed sweep in the offing this year? 4.
    USA Today, 13 Mar. 2023
  • Eight of the top 10 are from Swift, including a top four sweep.
    Lars Brandle, Billboard, 3 Nov. 2023
  • But after a sweep of the school and grounds, the sheriff’s office deemed it a hoax.
    Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press, 26 Feb. 2024
  • In the sweep of history, what kind of a moment was 2023?
    Marshall Ingwerson, The Christian Science Monitor, 22 Dec. 2023
  • If this happens, expect a near-sweep for the Daniels’ sci-fi saga.
    Ben Flanagan | Bflanagan@al.com, al, 10 Mar. 2023
  • Sophie became the Duchess of Edinburgh in the same sweep.
    Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 21 Nov. 2023
  • Vast sweeps of this flower bloom each spring on roadsides, banks, and fields.
    Steve Bender, Southern Living, 26 Sep. 2023
  • Then in came some security guys and did a sweep and went out.
    Matt Thompson, Spin, 31 Aug. 2023
  • Davis alleged that Kimbrough did a leg sweep, causing Hollman to fall to the ground.
    Minyvonne Burke, NBC News, 22 Nov. 2023
  • Jenner and Grede did a final sweep of the party premises.
    Sheila Yasmin Marikar, The New Yorker, 26 June 2023
  • The Sox will have a chance for a sweep when the teams conclude their two-game series Wednesday night, when two of the game’s top young pitchers take the mound.
    Andrew Mahoney, BostonGlobe.com, 26 July 2023
  • The school was then placed on lockdown, classes were stopped and three police K9s conducted a sweep of the school.
    Grace Gilson, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Sep. 2023
  • But to be fair, their three-game sweep in Oakland did come on the back of a series win over Los Angeles.
    Michael Arinze, Chicago Tribune, 20 Apr. 2023
  • Tanner Houck will be on the mound Sunday afternoon with the Sox seeking a three-game sweep.
    Peter Abraham, BostonGlobe.com, 7 May 2023
  • Now advocates and people on the street seemed resigned to sweeps any time a big crowd is headed their way.
    Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Mar. 2023
  • Casper and Stuart tried to recover their property from their homes in the week after the sweep.
    Ariane Lange, Sacramento Bee, 2 Feb. 2024
  • The Bulldogs, coming off a sweep of Northwestern of the Big Ten last weekend, skipped a mid-week game with the school on quarter break.
    Tom Murphy, Arkansas Online, 10 Mar. 2023
  • That stayed true during their wild-card round sweep of the Miami Marlins.
    Ryan Morik, Fox News, 10 Oct. 2023
  • But a Lola sweep for All Quiet shouldn’t be considered a sure thing.
    Scott Roxborough, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Mar. 2023
  • In some ways, the sweeps that Lula ordered last year had only increased the danger for Finger and his men.
    Jon Lee Anderson, The New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2024
  • In order to save their winning season, Gozen had to pull off the most dramatic of all feats: a reverse sweep.
    Melissah Yang, refinery29.com, 7 Nov. 2023
  • In order to save their winning season, Gozen would have to pull off the most dramatic of all feats: a reverse sweep.
    Melissah Yang, refinery29.com, 6 Nov. 2023
  • The win gives Toyota its first duel sweep since 2013, and Bell will start alongside Reddick in the second row on Sunday.
    Shane Connuck, Charlotte Observer, 16 Feb. 2024
  • On one of the main islands, which is home to the park’s most prominent sculptures, Hawkins managed to compress the entire sweep of the Mesozoic era.
    Yannic Rack, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Aug. 2023
  • Their son, James, became the Earl of Wessex in the same sweep, taking the title his father received when he got married in 1999.
    Janine Henni, Peoplemag, 19 Dec. 2023
  • China nearly pulled off a sweep of the U.S. if not for the comeback from Vu and Korda, who had a strong performance to take the lead on the 14th hole and didn’t look back.
    Marisa Ingemi, San Francisco Chronicle, 4 May 2023
  • The Mets have lost all six games since deadline day, including a ghastly sweep at Kansas City.
    Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY, 7 Aug. 2023
  • The game starts at 3 p.m., with the Sharks looking for the three-game season sweep of the Blues, who are barely hanging on to their playoff aspirations.
    Curtis Pashelka, The Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2024
  • Shannon did a quick sweep with his flashlight, finding only blood—then the couple took off in pursuit of their pet.
    Travis Hall, Field & Stream, 1 Feb. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sweep.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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