as in sailors
one who operates or navigates a seagoing vessel
old swabs swapping sea stories as they spend their last days in the veterans' home
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Recent Examples of swabs
Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 21 Dec. 2025
Gould said swabs from the area of the stain tested positive for blood.
—Penny Kmitt, CBS News, 3 Dec. 2025
There, Swart snaps on blue neoprene gloves and uses swabs attached to dowel rods to poke inside four crates for clumps of fresh feces.
—Rene Ebersole, Rolling Stone, 18 Nov. 2025
Participants were asked to collect weekly nasal swabs and to complete short surveys about any symptoms of respiratory illness, such as cough, sore throat, congestion or fever.
—Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 6 Nov. 2025
Whether residue swabs from the hands of the defendants who were arrested near the detention facility revealed firearm primer or suggested fireworks use, indicating, perhaps, their proximity to Song, were among the elements of physical evidence that the defense attorneys probed on Tuesday.
—Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 3 Oct. 2025
However, police did make an effort to get swabs from the girls for future DNA testing.
—Olivia B. Waxman, Time, 29 Sep. 2025
Ramos’ family cooperated and submitted DNA buccal swabs for entry into CODIS and completed commercial DNA kits.
—Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 24 Sep. 2025
The researchers collected stool samples, rectal swabs, rectal tissue, and blood samples before and after the intervention.
—New Atlas, 21 Sep. 2025
Noun
Tate’s hands were swabbed to test for gunshot residue, but those swabs were never tested, the lawsuit said.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for swabs
Noun
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Commercial-grade appliances, with deep-tilt skillet and griddle, enable sailors to cook more food faster.—
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In October, Regatta Bonaire draws sailors for races around Bonaire and to its neighboring islands.—
Noun
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Last week’s whale sightings by the Aquarium led the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to implement a voluntary slow speed zone called a Dynamic Management Area (DMA) for mariners to reduce their speed to 10 knots to protect the whales.—
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The Coast Guard has put out a signal to other mariners for the survivors in distress.—
Verb
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Elizabeth Scott brushes off the comparison.—
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If someone does bring up his teary picture, Wallake brushes it off.—
Noun
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The program includes support from an interdisciplinary team that includes doctors with dementia experience and care navigators.—
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Assistance is free and confidential, Altman said, and Covered California has invested in a network of navigators to ensure help is widely available.—
Verb
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The pH-balanced formula effectively lifts away makeup, bacteria, and daily buildup, then rinses off easily without leaving residue behind.—
Verb
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The panel combs through a variety of influences like film and TV production; art, fashion and design trends; new technologies, materials, textures; and even social media or upcoming sporting events.—
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In the doc, Rawson combs through family photos of her, her brother, and her parents at various celebrations and vacations.—
Verb
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China operates one of the world’s most extensive online censorship and surveillance regimes that scrubs political dissent and criticism of the ruling Communist Party’s leadership and ideologies, including a drive against feminine portrayals of men in pop culture.—
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Blue Origin scrubs New Glenn liftoff.—
Verb
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Light snow dusts the canyon’s upper rims, crowds thin, the air turns crisp, and one of the most magical Christmas experiences in the country appears.—
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Winter is also a wonderful surprise, when soft snow blankets valley trails and dusts the mountaintops.—
Cite this Entry
“Swabs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swabs. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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