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sway

verb · noun

Simple meaning

To move or swing from side to side.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

sway
US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈsweɪ

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. intransitive

    To move or swing from side to side; or backward and forward; to rock.

  2. transitive

    To influence or direct by power, authority, persuasion, or by moral force; to rule; to govern; to guide. Compare persuade.

  3. transitive

    To cause to incline or swing to one side, or backward and forward; to bias; to turn; to bend; to warp.

  4. To be drawn to one side by weight or influence; to lean; to incline.

  5. To have weight or influence.

  6. transitive

    To move or wield with the hand; to swing; to wield.

noun

  1. Pitching dangerously to one side

  2. Controlling influence

  3. Influence, weight, or authority that inclines to one side

  4. The act of swaying; a swaying motion; a swing or sweep of a weapon.

  5. Rule; dominion; control; power.

  6. A rocking or swinging motion.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C1 · Advanced
Frequency
Uncommon
Typical Use
Neutral / general English

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: To move or swing from side to side; or backward and forward; to rock.

Used this way, sway is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

holding swaysway back

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Similar Words, What’s the Difference?

Close in meaning, but not always interchangeable.

  • shake

    To move from side to side.

  • swing

    To move (an object) backward and forward.

Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • hold swayverbCompound term

    Be master.

  • anti-sway barnounCompound term

    A rigid metal bar between the front suspensions and between the rear suspensions of cars and trucks.

More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin

Synonyms

Sense: to move or swing from side to side

swingshakewobble

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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.