sweep

The word “sweep” means to clean a surface by brushing dirt or debris away, usually with a broom. In plain terms, to clean with broad brushing strokes, to move quickly across something, or to win every game in a series.

“Sweep” is pronounced sweep (/swip/ in IPA).

Here is “sweep” used in a sentence: “She swept the kitchen floor after dinner.”

“Sweep” is a verb.

The word “sweep” comes from Middle English. From Middle English swepen, tracing back through Old Germanic roots related to a swinging or striking motion — the same family as "swoop.".

“Sweep” is a fairly common word in modern English, usually learned at around the B2 level.

“Sweep” has 4 distinct senses listed in this dictionary. The most common is: to clean a surface by brushing dirt or debris away, usually with a broom.

"Sweep" means to clean a surface by brushing away dirt or debris, usually with a broom. "Mop" means to clean a floor using a wet mop and water or cleaning fluid, so you sweep up dry dirt but mop up spills and stains.

"Sweep up" means to gather and remove dirt or mess by brushing it together, as in sweeping up broken glass. "Sweep away" means to remove or destroy something completely, often forcefully, such as a flood sweeping away a bridge.

In sport, to "sweep" a series means to win every game or match in it without a single loss. A "clean sweep" can also mean winning all the available prizes, titles, or positions in a competition.

To "sweep" an area means to search it thoroughly and systematically, as police or soldiers might sweep a building. It suggests moving steadily across the whole space so nothing is missed.