Swab (noun) Definition, Meaning & Examples

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noun
  1. a large mop used on shipboard for cleaning decks, living quarters, etc.
  2. a bit of sponge, cloth, cotton, or the like, sometimes fixed to a stick, for cleansing the mouth of a sick person or for applying medicaments, drying areas, etc.
  3. the material collected with a swab as a specimen for microscopic study.
  4. a brush or wad of absorbent material for cleaning the bore of a firearm.
  5. a sailor; swabby.
  6. a clumsy fellow.
verb (used with object), swabbed, swab·bing.
  1. to clean with or as if with a swab: to swab the decks.
  2. to take up or apply, as moisture, with or as if with a swab: to swab soapy water from the decks.
  3. to pass over a surface: to swab a mop over the decks.
abbreviation
  1. Swabia.
  2. Swabian.
noun
  1. med
    • a small piece of cotton, gauze, etc, for use in applying medication, cleansing a wound, or obtaining a specimen of a secretion, etc
    • the specimen so obtained
  2. a mop for cleaning floors, decks, etc
  3. a brush used to clean a firearm's bore
  4. an uncouth or worthless fellow
verb swabs, swabbing or swabbed
  1. to clean or medicate with or as if with a swab
  2. to take up with a swab
Swab (noun) Definition, Meaning & Examples

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