swipe

/swaɪp/

//swaɪp// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

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

The verdict

“swipe” has 7 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #13,434. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,434
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To grab or bat quickly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-swipe · swipe · English

swipe · rank #13,434 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,434
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH tang

Nearest frequency peer: tang (+1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “swipe”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “swipe” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

swipe vs Swiss
40% similar
swipe vs swore
60% similar
swipe vs swirl
60% similar

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

Key facts for swipe
PropertyValue
Headwordswipe
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/swaɪp/
Letters5
Frequency rank#13,434
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “swipe”

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).swipelands here:

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

Ticks step logarithmically, so each one marks a roughly tenfold drop in how often the word turns up. Same rarity band neighbours include “tang” (#13,435), “tango” (#13,436), “telecom” (#13,437). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “swipe” is #13,434. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around swipe (IPA /swaɪp/), averb. Corpus frequency is #13,434 among 6,566 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for swipe, with forms such as "siwpe", "sswipe", and "swiep". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Swiss", "swore", "swirl", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From earlier swip (with a short vowel), from Middle English swippen, swipen (“to move violently”), from Old English swipian, sweopian, swippan (“to scourge, strike, beat, lash”), from Proto-West Germanic *swippjan, *swipōn, *swipēn, from Proto-Germanic *swi… The correct English form is swipe, spelled S-W-I-P-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To grab or bat quickly.
  2. 2
    To strike with a strong blow in a sweeping motion.
  3. 3
    To scan or register by sliding (a swipecard etc.) through a reader.
  4. 4
    To interact with a touch screen by drawing one's finger rapidly across it.
  5. 5
    To swipe right on (someone) on a dating application.
  6. 6
    To steal or snatch.
  7. 7
    To drink.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how swipe appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The cat swiped at the shoelace.
  2. He swiped his card at the door.

Etymology

From earlier swip (with a short vowel), from Middle English swippen, swipen (“to move violently”), from Old English swipian, sweopian, swippan (“to scourge, strike, beat, lash”), from Proto-West Germanic *swippjan, *swipōn, *swipēn, from Proto-Germanic *swipōną, *swipjaną, *swipāną (“to move”), from Proto-Indo-European *sweyb- (“to bend, turn, swerve, sway, swing, sweep”). Cognate with German schwippen (“to whip”), Danish svippe (“to smack; crack a whip”), Icelandic svipa (“to whip; move swiftly”). Related to sweep, swoop.

This word in other languages

deslizar(Español)choper(Français)schnappen(Deutsch)deslizar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • siwpe
  • sswipe
  • swiep
  • swippe
  • swpie
  • swwipe
  • wsipe

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of swipe - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

siwpe2sswipe1swiep2swippe1swpie2swwipe1wsipe2
Edit distance from "swipe"

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 "swipe"?
"swipe" is spelled S-W-I-P-E. The IPA pronunciation is /swaɪp/.
What does "swipe" mean?
As a verb, "swipe" means: To grab or bat quickly.
What words are commonly confused with "swipe"?
"swipe" is commonly confused with "Swiss", "swore", "swirl". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "swipe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "swipe" is /swaɪp/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "swipe"?
From earlier swip (with a short vowel), from Middle English swippen, swipen (“to move violently”), from Old English swipian, sweopian, swippan (“to scourge, strike, beat, lash”), from Proto-West Germanic *swippjan, *swipōn, *swipēn, from Proto-Ger... See the full etymology section above for more details.
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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "swipe", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

tango#13,436socio#13,427Shaun#13,422Saxon#13,417

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

Royce7 variantsroofs7 variantsAgnes7 variantsBurma7 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list