sway
nounEtymology
From earlier swey (“to fall, swoon”), from Middle English sweyen, from Old English *swǣġan (“to bend, bow”), from Proto-West Germanic *swaigijan, from Proto-Germanic *swaigijaną, from Proto-Indo-European *sweh₁- See also Saterland Frisian swooie (“to swing, wave, wobble”); also Lithuanian svai̇̃gti (“to become giddy or dizzy”), the second element of Avestan 𐬞𐬀𐬌𐬭𐬌-𐬱𐬑𐬎𐬀𐬑𐬙𐬀 (paⁱri-šxuaxta, “to surround”), Sanskrit स्वजते (svájate, “he embraces, enfolds”). The noun derived from the verb.
- derived from *sweh₁-✻
- derived from *swaigijaną✻
- derived from *swaigijan✻
- inherited from sweyen
Definitions
The act of swaying
The act of swaying; a swaying motion; a swing or sweep of a weapon.
A rocking or swinging motion.
- The old song caused a little sway in everyone in the room.
Influence, weight, or authority that inclines to one side
- I doubt I'll hold much sway with someone so powerful.
- Though both Mr. Knight and Mr. Hennessey view themselves as traders first, the “finfluencer” culture has flourished with the surge in online interest, and they have considerable sway.
- […] the slowly dawning realisation that, as the billionaire venture capitalist Michael Moritz put it, they have “no sway” over what they unleashed.
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Preponderance
Preponderance; turn or cast of balance.
Rule
Rule; dominion; control; power.
- Prayuth's return as prime minister takes Thailand back to 1980s. Military still holds sway in a democracy that has yet to mature.
A switch or rod used by thatchers to bind their work.
The maximum amplitude of a vehicle's lateral motion.
Synonym of sweet flag (“Acorus calamus”)
To move or swing from side to side
To move or swing from side to side; or backward and forward; to rock.
- sway to the music
- The trees swayed in the breeze.
To move or wield with the hand
To move or wield with the hand; to swing; to wield.
- to sway the sceptre
- As sparckles from the Anduile vse to fly, / When heauie hammers on the wedge are swaid
To influence or direct by power, authority, persuasion, or by moral force
To influence or direct by power, authority, persuasion, or by moral force; to rule; to govern; to guide. Compare persuade.
- Do you think you can sway their decision?
- This was the race / To sway the world, and land and sea subdue.
- After all this time […] the woman who endured all that by focusing on her hit list can be swayed from her course by the prospect of her family and her home.
To cause to incline or swing to one side, or backward and forward
To cause to incline or swing to one side, or backward and forward; to bias; to turn; to bend; to warp.
- reeds swayed by the wind
- judgment swayed by passion
- Let not temporal and little advantages sway you against a more durable interest.
To hoist (a mast or yard) into position.
- to sway up the yards
To be drawn to one side by weight or influence
To be drawn to one side by weight or influence; to lean; to incline.
- euen in these Personall Respects, the Ballance swayes on our part: […]
To have weight or influence.
- The example of sundry churches […] doth sway much.
To bear sway
To bear sway; to rule; to govern.
- Hadst thou swayed as kings should do.
A village and civil parish in New Forest district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref…
A village and civil parish in New Forest district, Hampshire, England (OS grid ref SZ2798).
The neighborhood
Vish — recursive loop
No curated loop yet for sway. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.
sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA