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Definition of swing noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

swing

noun
 
/swɪŋ/
 
/swɪŋ/
Idioms
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    movement

  1. [countable] a swinging movement or rhythm
    • He took a wild swing at the ball.
    • the swing of her hips
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • wild
    • mighty
    • powerful
    verb + swing
    • do
    • make
    • take
    swing + noun
    • bridge
    • door
    preposition
    • swing at
    • swing of
    See full entry
  2. of opinion/mood

  3. [countable] a change from one opinion or situation to another; the amount by which something changes
    • Voting showed a 10 per cent swing to Labour.
    • There are indications of a swing towards nuclear power.
    see also mood swing
    Extra Examples
    • The Conservatives suffered an adverse swing of 6 per cent.
    • The party needs a swing of only 2.5 per cent to win the seat.
    • There was a political swing of the pendulum back to the right.
    • This represents a swing of 14 per cent against the party.
    • a sharp swing in the attitudes of economists
    • the swing away from science in schools
    • violent swings in policy
    • his sudden swings of mood
    Topics Opinion and argumentc1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • big
    • dramatic
    • huge
    verb + swing
    • need
    • represent
    • suffer
    swing + noun
    • state
    • vote
    • voter
    preposition
    • swing in favour of
    • swing to
    • swing towards/​toward
    See full entry
  4. hanging seat

  5. [countable] a seat for swinging on, hung from above on ropes or chains
    • The kids were playing on the swings.
    • Her dad pushed her on the swing.
    Topics Games and toysc1, Gardensc1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • porch
    • tyre/​tire
    verb + swing
    • go on
    • play on
    • sit on
    preposition
    • on a/​the swing
    See full entry
  6. in golf

  7. [singular] the swinging movement you make with your arms and body when you hit the ball in the game of golf
    • I need to work on my swing.
    Extra Examples
    • The golfers were practising their swings.
    • the technique for making the perfect golf swing
    Topics Sports: ball and racket sportsc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective
    • wild
    • mighty
    • powerful
    verb + swing
    • do
    • make
    • take
    swing + noun
    • bridge
    • door
    preposition
    • swing at
    • swing of
    See full entry
  8. music

  9. [uncountable] a type of jazz with a smooth rhythm, played especially by big dance bands in the 1930s
  10. journey

  11. [singular] (North American English) a quick journey, especially one made by a politician, in which somebody visits several different places in a short time
    • a three-day campaign swing through California
  12. Word OriginOld English swingan ‘to beat, whip’, also ‘rush’, geswing ‘a stroke with a weapon’, of Germanic origin; related to German schwingen ‘brandish’.
Idioms
get in/into the swing (of something)
  1. (informal) to get used to an activity or a situation and become fully involved in it
    • I’ve only been here a week so I haven’t got into the swing of things yet.
go with a swing (British English)
  1. (of a party or an activity) to be lively and fun
    • She made the whole party go with a swing.
  2. (of music) to have a strong rhythm
in full swing
  1. having reached a very lively level
    • When we arrived the party was already in full swing.
swings and roundabouts
  1. (British English, informal) used to say that there are advantages and disadvantages whatever decision you make
    • If you earn more, you pay more in tax, so it's all swings and roundabouts.
    • What you gain on the swings you may lose on the roundabouts.
See swing in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee swing in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
halfway
adverb
 
 
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