SWAB • DICCIONARIO INGLES.COM • Definition of Swab

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/swɑb/ Listen

noun

Swab n.

A kind of mop for cleaning floors, the desks of vessels, etc., esp. one made of rope-yarns or threads.

A bit of sponge, cloth, or the like, fastened to a handle, for cleansing the mouth of a sick person, applying medicaments to deep-seated parts, etc.

(Naut.) An epaulet. (Sailor's Slang)

A cod, or pod, as of beans or pease. (Obs.)

A sponge, or other suitable substance, attached to a long rod or handle, for cleaning the bore of a firearm.

verb

Swab v. t. (past & past part. swabbed; pres. part. swabbing) (Spelt also swob) To clean with a mop or swab; to wipe when very wet, as after washing; as, to swab the desk of a ship.

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Etymology of 'Swab'

Collaborative International Dictionary of English 0.48

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"Swab" Quotes from Famous Books

... issued forth on the enterprise, cased in tight blue pantaloons that fitted him like his skin, over which were drawn long well-polished Hessian boots, each with a formidable tassel at top, and his coat was buttoned close up to the chin, with a blaz-, ing swab on the right shoulder, while a laced cocked hat and dress sword completed his equipment. But, alas! when we were accounted for on board of the old Torch, there was a fearful dilapidation of his external man. First of all, his inexpressibles were absolutely ...

— Tom Cringle's Log • Michael Scott

... thankful when I had a chance to wring the long knife out of the murderous stranger's hand, and I spoke out to the smooth-faced fellow. "You'll do, my boy, even if you don't know a yard from a main-brace bumpkin. Pass a line around his legs and stuff a swab into his mouth ...

— Mr. Trunnell • T. Jenkins Hains

... out. I guess I'm best fitted for running mines or herding cattle, Dan. And I'm leaving all the boys who know me for those who don't—and I don't git on with folks who don't know me. God knows what persuaded me to sell to that macaroni-eating swab. But it's done, and there ain't no manner of good ...

— Colorado Jim • George Goodchild

... don't need to mind that. I have n't got anything you are used to. I just take them down to the stream and swab them off with a ...

— The Wrong Woman • Charles D. Stewart

... is so frequently done in a negligent manner, by domestics, as this. A full supply of conveniences will do much toward the remedy of this evil. A swab, made of strips of linen tied to a stick, is useful to wash nice dishes, especially small, deep articles. Two or three towels, and three dish-cloths should be used. Two large tin tubs, painted on the outside, ...

— The American Woman's Home • Catherine E. Beecher and Harriet Beecher Stowe

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