swing

/swˈɪŋ/ · 1 syllable

Meaning

verb

move in a curve or arc, usually with the intent of hitting
“He swung his left fist”
move or walk in a swinging or swaying manner
“He swung back”
change direction with a swinging motion; turn
“swing back”
influence decisively
“This action swung many votes over to his side”
make a big sweeping gesture or movement
hang freely
“the ornaments dangled from the tree”
hit or aim at with a sweeping arm movement
“The soccer player began to swing at the referee”
alternate dramatically between high and low values
“his mood swings”
live in a lively, modern, and relaxed style
“The Woodstock generation attempted to swing freely”
have a certain musical rhythm
“The music has to swing”
be a social swinger; socialize a lot
play with a subtle and intuitively felt sense of rhythm

noun

a state of steady vigorous action that is characteristic of an activity
“the party went with a swing”
mechanical device used as a plaything to support someone swinging back and forth
a sweeping blow or stroke
“he took a wild swing at my head”
changing location by moving back and forth
a style of jazz played by big bands popular in the 1930s; flowing rhythms but less complex than later styles of jazz
a jaunty rhythm in music
the act of swinging a golf club at a golf ball and (usually) hitting it
in baseball; a batter's attempt to hit a pitched ball
“he took a vicious cut at the ball”
a square dance figure; a pair of dancers join hands and dance around a point between them

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