I. swipe 1 /swaɪp/ BrE AmE verb
[ Date: 1800-1900 ; Origin: Probably from sweep ]
1 . [intransitive and transitive] to hit or to try to hit someone or something by swinging your arm or an object very quickly:
She swiped me across the face.
swipe at
He jumped forward, intending to swipe at her.
2 . [transitive] informal to steal something SYN pinch British English :
The photos were probably swiped by an employee.
3 . [transitive] to pull a plastic card through a machine that can read the electronic information on it:
Swipe your card to open the door.
II. swipe 2 BrE AmE noun [countable]
1 . a criticism of someone or something SYN dig
swipe at
His comments were a sarcastic swipe at the police.
In her latest article, she takes a swipe at (=criticizes) her critics.
2 . when you hit or try to hit someone or something by swinging your arm very quickly:
She took a swipe at the ball.