swift

¹

[ swift ]

adjective

, swift·er, swift·est.

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.

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 swift moth [swift, mawth, 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

[ swift ]

noun

1. Gustavus Franklin, 1839–1903, U.S. meat packer.
2. Jonathan Isaac Bickerstaff, 1667–1745, English satirist and clergyman, born in Ireland.

SWIFT

³

[ swift ]

noun

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

Swift

¹

/ swɪft /

noun

1. SwiftGraham Colin1949MBritishWRITING: novelist 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. SwiftJonathan16671745MAnglo-IrishWRITING: satiristRELIGION: clergyman 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)

swift

²

/ swɪft /

adjective

1. moving or able to move quickly; fast
2. occurring or performed quickly or suddenly; instant

   a swift response

3. postpositivefoll byto prompt to act or respond

   swift to take revenge

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. See swift moth
   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

Derived Forms

• ˈSwiftian, adjective
• ˈswiftly, adverb
• ˈswiftness, noun

Other Words From

• swift·ly adverb
• swift·ness noun

Word History and Origins

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 swift²

First recorded in 1970–75

Word History and Origins

Origin of swift¹

Old English, from swīfan to turn; related to Old Norse svifa to rove, Old Frisian swīvia to waver, Old High German sweib a reversal; see swivel

Synonym Study

See quick.

Example Sentences

They know they will face either a swift backlash or deafening silence.

From The Daily Beast

Taylor Swift – 1989 A change has, it seems, done Taylor Swift good.

From The Daily Beast

You talk in the book about meeting some of your idols, including Taylor Swift.

From The Daily Beast

When they combine it with their pop music, like Taylor Swift, it's basically targeting children and that's wrong.

From The Daily Beast

Does it matter whether Taylor Swift wants me to inflate my Internet notoriety by doing a dumb thing where I lip sync to her music?

From The Daily Beast

And he was gone, and out of sight on the swift galloping Benito, before Father Gaspara bethought himself.

From Project Gutenberg

Dean Swift was indeed a misanthrope by theory, however he may have made exception to private life.

From Project Gutenberg

Sanson's Atlas: a very large atlas by a French geographer in use in Swift's time.

From Project Gutenberg

The sound of the swift beating of horse-hoofs was heard from the south, and soon three men came riding up.

From Project Gutenberg

Long before reason found the answer, instinct—swift, merciless interpreter—told him plainly.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

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