Swat

/swɒt/

Meaning & Definition

noun

A sharp blow or strike.

With a quick swat, the cat caught the toy mouse.

A sudden action to eliminate something troublesome.

His swat at the problem showed he was determined to solve it.

verb

To hit or strike something with a sharp blow.

She swatted the fly away from her face with a newspaper.

To remove or eliminate something by striking it with a quick motion.

He swatted at the annoying mosquito buzzing around his ear.

To act decisively to thwart or stop something.

The coach swatted down any negativity among the players before the big game.

Origin unknown, possibly imitative of the sound of hitting.

swat team

A specialized police unit trained for high-risk operations.

swat at

To attempt to hit or swat something away.

give a swat

To strike something sharply.

smack

To hit or slap something with the palm.

slap

A quick hit or stroke, usually with an open hand.

strike

To hit forcibly and deliberately.

To forcefully dismiss or criticize someone.

He really got swatted by the teacher for his behavior.

To quickly eliminate something.

I need to swat those tasks off my to-do list.