sweeping
sweep·ing/ˈswiːpɪŋ/noun, adjective, verb
sweeping is spelled S-W-E-E-P-I-N-G: 8 letters and 2 syllables (sweep·ing). It appears 6.2 times per million words in written English, the 9,735th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, sweeping means “An instance of sweeping” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of sweeping is sweepings.
How many letters and syllables are in sweeping?
| Letters | 8: S-W-E-E-P-I-N-G |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: sweep·ing |
| In writing | 6.2 times per million words; the 9,735th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is sweeping?
Sweeping appears 6.2 times per million words in written English, the 9,735th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce sweeping?
- /ˈswiːpɪŋ/
Sweeping has 2 syllables, split sweep·ing in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-sweeping.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of sweeping
- sweepings plural
- more sweeping comparative
- most sweeping superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does sweeping mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
An instance of sweeping.
The sidewalk needed a sweeping every morning.
- 2
The activity of sweeping.
Sweeping took all morning.
adjective
- 1
Wide, broad, affecting or touching upon many things.
The government will bring in sweeping changes to the income tax system.
- 2
Completely overwhelming.
He claimed a sweeping victory.
- 3
Moving in a continuous motion, rather than by intermittent jumps. (For example, the second hand on a clock face may move either in the sweeping manner or in the ticking manner.)
verb
- 1
present participle and gerund of sweep
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Sweeping in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | balayage , à l'emporte-pièce, radical, complet, large, vaste |
| German | Fegen, Kehren , weitreichend , durchschlagend |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does sweeping come from?
By surface analysis, sweep + -ing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).