sweeping

Etymology

By surface analysis, sweep +‎ -ing.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈswiːpɪŋ/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -iːpɪŋ
• Hyphenation: sweep‧ing

Verb

sweeping

1. present participle and gerund of sweep

Noun

sweeping (countable and uncountable, plural sweepings)

1. (countable) An instance of sweeping.

   The sidewalk needed a sweeping every morning.

2. (uncountable) The activity of sweeping.

   Sweeping took all morning.

   The sidewalk needed sweeping every morning.

Adjective

sweeping (comparative more sweeping, superlative most sweeping)

1. Wide, broad, affecting or touching upon many things.

   The government will bring in sweeping changes to the income tax system.

   He loves making sweeping statements without the slightest evidence.

   • 1947 January and February, O. S. Nock, “"The Aberdonian" in Wartime”, in Railway Magazine, page 7:

     We steamed easily across the first part of the Tay Bridge, and then after passing over the long spans in mid-stream we coasted smoothly down the 1 in 114 gradient, and around the sweeping curve through Esplanade Station.

   • 2013 June 18, Simon Romero, “Protests Widen as Brazilians Chide Leaders”, in New York Times, retrieved 21 June 2013:

     By the time politicians in several cities backed down on Tuesday and announced that they would cut or consider reducing fares, the demonstrations had already morphed into a more sweeping social protest, with marchers waving banners carrying slogans like “The people have awakened.”

   • 2022 January 12, Nigel Harris, “Comment: Unhappy start to 2022”, in RAIL, number 948, page 3:

     The thing is, we've even had formal confirmation from Government itself that the crucial research required to make such sweeping claims hasn't been done!

2. Completely overwhelming.

   He claimed a sweeping victory.

Anagrams

• weepings