SWISH


Meaning of SWISH in English

I. ˈswish verb

( -ed/-ing/-es )

Etymology: imitative

intransitive verb

: to move, pass, swing, or whirl with the sound of a swish : make the sound of a swish

swished before me in a tight dress — Raymond Chandler

could hear cars swishing past on the main road — Elizabeth Taylor

windshield wipers swishing — John McCarten

transitive verb

1. : to move, pass, swing, or agitate with or as if with the sound of a swish : whisk

the saddled horse swishing its tail — James Courage

sipping water and swishing it about in the mouth — F.A.Geldard

2. : to cut or remove with or as if with a swish — used with off

swish off the tops of weeds with a sickle

3. : to strike or lash with a swish : flog

II. noun

( -es )

Etymology: imitative

1. also swish-swish ˈ ̷ ̷| ̷ ̷

a. : a prolonged hissing sound (as produced by a whip rapidly cutting the air)

the slow, steady swish of scythes — S.H.Holbrook

a far-off swish of surf — S.E.Morison

swish of tires — William Faulkner

poplars swayed and tossed with a roaring swish — Harvey Breit

b. : a light sweeping or brushing sound (as of a long or full silk skirt in motion)

the swish of drawing paper being unrolled — Angus McGugan

the swish of a mop — Virginia Woolf

2. : a movement accompanied by the sound of a swish

tails swung rhythmically except for occasional sudden swishes at flies — Elizabeth Janeway

3. : a flogging birch or cane : switch

smarting under recent applications of the swish — George Meredith

4.

[ swish (V) ]

: smartness , fashionableness

5.

[ swish (I) ; from his effeminate gait and gestures]

slang : homosexual ; especially : a male homosexual

III. adverb

Etymology: imitative

: with a swish

one day when the foliage all went swish with autumn — Robert Frost

IV. noun

( -es )

Etymology: origin unknown

: sun-dried earth used in West Africa as a building material

V. adjective

Etymology: English dialect, of unknown origin

: smart , fashionable

a swish gown

a swish automobile

Webster's New International English Dictionary.      Новый международный словарь английского языка Webster.