What does "swoop" mean?
Swoop: To seize; to catch up; to take with a sweep. And now at last you came to swoop it all. Dryden. The grazing ox which swoops it [the medicinal herb] in with the common grass. Glanvill.
Additional senses
- 2.To descend with closed wings from a height upon prey, as a hawk; to swoop.
- 3.To pass with pomp; to sweep. [Obs.] Drayton.
- 4.A falling on and seizing, as the prey of a rapacious bird; the act of swooping. The eagle fell, . . . and carried away a whole litter of cubs at a swoop. L'Estrange.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00