Swath is a broad strip or area cut or covered by something, such as a swath of land cleared by a mower or a wide range of influence. It can also mean a sweeping stretch or expanse in metaphorical terms. The noun often implies substantial, uninterrupted breadth rather than a mere narrow line.
"The mower carved a clean swath through the tall grass."
"A swath of skepticism ran through the crowd after the announcement."
"Her speech opened a swath of reforms that touched multiple sectors."
"The industry was hit by a swath of new regulations overnight."
Swath comes from Old English swæth or sweath, rooted in Germanic languages, closely related to sweep. The original sense referred to a swept or laid-out path, strip, or clearing, often created by mowing or cutting. In Middle English and early Modern English, the term expanded to denote a broad tract or belt of land, similar to “swath of fields.” The concept evolved from a physical cutting or sweeping action to a metaphorical breadth of influence, range, or extent. While related to “sweep,” swath emphasizes breadth and breadth of coverage rather than mere movement. The earliest known usage traces to agricultural or landscape descriptions in medieval texts, where terms for cleared strips of land and furrows reflect the practical act of clearing or cutting. Over centuries, its figurative meaning broadened to encompass areas, scopes, or ranges—e.g., policy changes within a wide “swath.” Today, swath remains a robust noun in both physical and figurative senses, maintaining the core image of a long, continuous stretch.
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💡 These words have similar meanings to "Swath" and can often be used interchangeably.
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Words that rhyme with "Swath"
-ath sounds
Practice with these rhyming pairs to improve your pronunciation consistency:
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Swath is pronounced with a single stressed syllable: /swɒθ/ (UK) or /swɑːθ/ (some US pronunciations). Start with an initial /s/ sound, then /w/ (lip rounding), followed by the open back rounded vowel like /ɒ/ or /ɑː/, and finish with the voiceless dental fricative /θ/ (tip of tongue between teeth). Place your tongue low and back for /ɒ/ or /ɑː/ and keep the tip lightly touching the upper teeth for /θ/.
Common errors include turning /ɒ/ into a tighter /ɔ/ or /ɪ/ vowel (sounding like "swit"), adding a voiced /ð/ or /d/ at the end, and pronouncing /θ/ as /s/ or /t/. To correct: keep the vowel broad and open (/ɒ/ or /ɑː/), ensure the final sound is the voiceless dental /θ/ by relaxing the tongue tip between the teeth with steady airflow, and avoid voicing the final consonant.
In US accents, /swɑːθ/ is common in parts of the South and Midwest, with /ɒ/ or /ɑː/ depending on regional rhoticity and vowel merging. UK pronunciations lean toward /swɒθ/ with a more open /ɒ/ and sometimes a shorter /ɑː/ in some varieties. Australian speakers often keep /swɒːθ/ or /swɔːθ/, with less rhotic influence and a broader, more open vowel quality. Consistent voiceless /θ/ is crucial across all regions.
The difficulty centers on the final /θ/ sound, which is rare in some native languages and requires a light, unvoiced dental fricative produced without voicing. The preceding vowel also demands a broad, open quality that’s easy to compress in fast speech. Additionally, subtle vowel length and quality differences across dialects (e.g., /ɒ/ vs /ɑː/) influence perceived pronunciation and require careful mouth positioning to avoid blending with nearby sounds.
Because swath ends with a voiceless dental fricative, you’ll notice small mouth adjustments between US and UK. In many US pronunciations, the /ɒ/ can approach /ɑː/ in stressed syllables, which changes perceived vowel color but not the final /θ/. Focus on maintaining voiceless airflow through the teeth while the tongue tip lightly rests between them. This keeps the final /θ/ crisp and distinct.
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