swoop
part of speech
verb (swoop, swoops, swooped, swooping); noun (a swoop, swoops)
meaning for a pupil
1) To swoop means to fly or move down quickly and suddenly through the air, usually to catch something. tree →
2) A swoop is a quick downward rush, or a sudden attack or raid. tree →
3) «In one fell swoop» means all at once. tree →
sense in the lessons
In the Tanakh and Jewish tradition: God is shown swooping on the wind, and an enemy swoops like a vulture. Interpretation: Tradition reads the swoop as a picture of sudden help for the righteous or sudden judgment of their foes. In the primary lessons: In science and nature: birds of prey (eagles, hawks, owls) swoop to catch mice; in Australia, magpies swoop on people in spring to protect their nests — wear a hat, walk calmly, do not run or wave arms. In stories, «swoop» gives a picture of fast, sudden movement. Phrases: swoop down, swoop in, swoop on, in one fell swoop.
examples
- And He rode upon a cherub, and did fly; yea, He did swoop down upon the wings of the wind. (Writings PSA.18.11, JPS 1917) tree →
- For thus saith the LORD: Behold, he shall swoop as a vulture, and shall spread out his wings against Moab. (Prophets JER.48.40, JPS 1917) tree →
- The owl swooped down and caught a mouse. tree →
- In spring, magpies swoop on cyclists near their nests. tree →
- A seagull swooped and stole my chip. tree →
- The swallows swooped low over the pond. tree →
- Police swooped on the thieves at dawn. tree →
- Mum swooped in and picked up the crying toddler. tree →
- He cleared the table in one fell swoop. tree →
- He had hardly spoken, before the hawk swooped down and knocked the cup from his hand. tree →
note
Regular verb: swooped, swooping. Swoop means going down fast; «soar» means flying high and gliding. Australian safety: during swooping season, wear a hat or helmet and use a different path if a magpie nest is near.
In the corpora
- For thus saith the LORD: Behold, he shall swoop as a vulture, and shall spread out his wings against Moab.
- And He rode upon a cherub, and did fly; yea, He did swoop down upon the wings of the wind.
- They are passed away as the swift ships; as the vulture that swoopeth on the prey.
- Australian magpies swoop people in spring to protect their nests.
- Magpies can remember human faces, and people who throw things at them often get swooped more.
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «swoop» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.