swot

¹ American  

[swot] / swɒt /

verb (used with object)

swotted, swotting

1. swat.

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swot ² American  

[swot] / swɒt /

verb (used without object)

swotted, swotting

1. to study or work hard.

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noun

1. a student who studies assiduously, especially to the exclusion of other activities or interests; grind.

2. hard study or hard work; concentrated effort.

swot ¹ British  

/ swɒt /

verb

1. (often foll by up) to study (a subject) intensively, as for an examination; cram

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noun

1. Also called: swotter.  a person who works or studies hard

2. hard work or grind

SWOT ² British  

abbreviation

1. strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats: an analysis of a product made before it is marketed

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swot ³ British  

/ swɒt /

verb

1. a variant of swat 1

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Other Word Forms

• swotter noun

Etymology

Origin of swot

First recorded in 1840–50; dialectal variant of sweat

Example Sentences

"Geopolitics doesn’t wait for you to swot up on your brief."

From BBC • Jun. 16, 2024

She calls herself a swot, which translates roughly to an overenthusiastic student.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 27, 2019

For all his brains and later academic renown, he was no swot: he started cramming five days before finals, from an undemanding textbook nicknamed “Economics for the Half-witted Child”.

From Economist • Aug. 13, 2015

So if you want to get the scoop on friends and colleagues, swot up on this list…

From Forbes • Jun. 5, 2015

Swot.—I have often heard military men talk of swot, meaning thereby mathematics; and persons eminent in that science are termed "good swots."

From Notes and Queries, Number 22, March 30, 1850 by Various