swept

/swɛpt/

//swɛpt// adj

"swept" is a 5-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“swept” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #7,857 in English word frequency and used as an adjective.

#7,857
frequency rank, English
5
letters
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Cleared of mines (explosive devices).

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

swept vs swot
60% similar
swept vs swift
60% similar
swept vs swipe
60% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for swept
PropertyValue
Headwordswept
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/swɛpt/
Letters5
Frequency rank#7,857
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “swept” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). swept lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for swept is 5 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /swɛpt/. Corpus data places it at rank #7,857 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Cleared of mines (explosive devices).".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for swept, with forms such as "sewpt", "sswept", and "sweppt". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "swot", "swift", "swipe", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct English form is swept, spelled S-W-E-P-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Cleared of mines (explosive devices).

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: sewpt,sswept,sweppt,sweptt,swetp,swpet,swwept,wsept

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of swept - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

sewpt2sswept1sweppt1sweptt1swetp2swpet2swwept1wsept2
Edit distance from "swept"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "swept"?
"swept" is spelled S-W-E-P-T. The IPA pronunciation is /swɛpt/.
What does "swept" mean?
As an adjective, "swept" means: Cleared of mines (explosive devices).
What words are commonly confused with "swept"?
"swept" is commonly confused with "swot", "swift", "swipe". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "swept"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "swept" is /swɛpt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "swept" come from?
"swept" is a English word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “swept”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is S-W-E-P-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /swɛpt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “swot” - see the side-by-side comparison. swept vs swot
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list