swift

¹ American  

[swift] / swɪft /

adjective

swifter, swiftest

1. moving or capable of moving with great speed or velocity; fleet; rapid.

   a swift ship.

   Synonyms:

   speedy

2. coming, happening, or performed quickly or without delay.

   a swift decision.

   Synonyms:

   expeditious

3. quick or prompt to act or respond.

   swift to jump to conclusions.

4. Slang. quick to perceive or understand; smart; clever.

   You can't cheat him, he's too swift.

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adverb

1. swiftly.

noun

1. any of numerous long-winged, swallowlike birds of the family Apodidae, related to the hummingbirds and noted for their rapid flight.

2. tree swift.

3. spiny lizard.

4. Also called ghost moth.  Also called swift moth.  any of several brown or gray moths, the males of which are usually white, of the family Hepialidae, noted for rapid flight.

5. an adjustable device upon which a hank of yarn is placed in order to wind off skeins or balls.

6. the main cylinder on a machine for carding flax.

Swift ² American  

[swift] / swɪft /

noun

1. Gustavus Franklin, 1839–1903, U.S. meat packer.

2. Jonathan Isaac Bickerstaff, 1667–1745, English satirist and clergyman, born in Ireland.

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SWIFT ³ American  

[swift] / swɪft /

noun

1. Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication: an international consortium that routes instructions concerning transfer of funds between financial institutions.

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swift ¹ British  

/ swɪft /

adjective

1. moving or able to move quickly; fast

2. occurring or performed quickly or suddenly; instant

   a swift response

3. prompt to act or respond

   swift to take revenge

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adverb

1. 1. swiftly or quickly

   2. ( in combination )

      swift-moving

noun

1. any bird of the families Apodidae and Hemiprocnidae, such as Apus apus ( common swift ) of the Old World: order Apodiformes. They have long narrow wings and spend most of the time on the wing

2. (sometimes capital) a variety of domestic fancy pigeon originating in Egypt and Syria and having an appearance somewhat similar to a swift

3. short for swift moth

4. any of certain North American lizards of the genera Sceloporus and Uta that can run very rapidly: family Iguanidae (iguanas)

5. the main cylinder in a carding machine

6. an expanding circular frame used to hold skeins of silk, wool, etc

Swift ² British  

/ swɪft /

noun

1. Graham Colin. born 1949, English writer: his novels include Waterland (1983), Last Orders (1996), which won the Booker prize, and The Light of Day (2002)

2. Jonathan. 1667–1745, Anglo-Irish satirist and churchman, who became dean of St Patrick's, Dublin, in 1713. His works include A Tale of a Tub (1704) and Gulliver's Travels (1726)

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Related Words

See quick.

Other Word Forms

• Swiftian adjective
• swiftly adverb
• swiftness noun

Etymology

Origin of swift¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English (adjective and adverb), Old English (adjective); akin to Old English swīfan “to revolve,” Old Norse svīfa “to rove”; swivel

Origin of SWIFT³

First recorded in 1970–75

Example Sentences

—The dollar rose as doubts over a swift end to the Iran war weaken risk sentiment and lift oil prices.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

They added: "We have taken swift action to protect our systems and data," including taking some systems offline.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

As such, he expects the S&P 500 to remain volatile, limited upside followed by swift corrections.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 1, 2026

Does a state “enforce orthodoxy” when it insists upon swift treatment for bone fractures?

From Slate • Mar. 31, 2026

And with one swift motion, she kicked me in the shin and raced off down the path toward a cluster of bright yellow forsythia.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Related Words

• abrupt
• expeditious
• hasty
• nimble
• quick
• rapid
• speedy
• sudden
• unexpected