as in nerd
a person slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits
every time he begged off a night at the pub—saying he had to study—his mates teased him for being a swot
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Recent Examples of swot
John McIntyre, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2023
So, swot up, then delegate.
—Barnaby Lashbrooke, Forbes, 4 May 2021
The Economist, 13 June 2020
Greenblatt might want to have a chinwag with some of his colleagues in the history department and swot up the biography of someone like Wisconsin’s Robert La Follette, a progressive populist politician perhaps more to his liking.
—Alex Beam, BostonGlobe.com, 2 May 2018
Noun
The Oxbridge and Ivy League colleges traditionally had disparaging terms for students who worked too hard and devoted themselves too diligently to learning: swot in England, grind in the United States.
—John McIntyre, The Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2023
So, swot up, then delegate.
—Barnaby Lashbrooke, Forbes, 4 May 2021
Verb
Yamada Jun, the IT expert, became the CEO and travelled to Germany to swot up on renewables.
—The Economist, 13 June 2020
Greenblatt might want to have a chinwag with some of his colleagues in the history department and swot up the biography of someone like Wisconsin’s Robert La Follette, a progressive populist politician perhaps more to his liking.
—Alex Beam, BostonGlobe.com, 2 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swot
Noun
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This really looks like a Warhammer nerd's dream come true.—
Ian Stokes,
Space.com,
29 Jan. 2025
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Curitiba is a tidy, charming place known by transportation nerds for its pioneering bus system (passengers enter futuristic black tubes before getting on buses that speed along in dedicated lanes).—
Gary Shteyngart,
The New Yorker,
27 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The researchers aimed to analyze the physiological effects of carbonated water, as it has been found to induce satiety (feelings of fullness) and gastric motility (movement of food through the body), both of which could reduce hunger.—
Angelica Stabile,
Fox News,
27 Jan. 2025
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The memorandum by Trump directs the Interior secretary to analyze the legal pathways.—
Alan Wooten | The Center Square,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
26 Jan. 2025
Noun
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For some design geeks, however, the heart and soul of L.A.’s architecture resides not just in its museums and office towers but also in its exalted, often otherworldly houses.—
Jessica Gelt,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Jan. 2025
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As the craft beer market evolved, so too did Firestone Walker, not just with nerdy beer geeks seeking limited releases, but also with a broader beer loving crowd.—
Don Tse,
Forbes,
1 Jan. 2025
Verb
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In the finale, The Bride recognizes Clayface standing next to the princess on the security tape of the castle and deduces that Circe was right.—
Rafael Motamayor,
IndieWire,
9 Jan. 2025
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Manners deduced that Timken’s owner must have been a FEE supporter given his circulation of The Freeman.—
John Tamny,
Forbes,
10 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The probe studied the universe in microwaves through 2010, and did so from a location 1 million miles (1.6 million kilometers) from Earth at a stable point in space called Lagrange Point 2.—
Tariq Malik,
Space.com,
31 Jan. 2025
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But still, Limaye says years and years of work had gone into studying mRNA vaccines preceding the pandemic, there were still independent review boards, and there was continual data evaluation throughout to track outcomes and update guidelines about who should be vaccinated.—
Lauren Leffer,
Popular Science,
30 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Realtor’s Video Reveals Secret Room with Direct View Into Bathtub: ‘Look at How Creepy This Is’ When the poster’s in-laws found out about the purchase, they were outraged despite not knowing who was behind the deal.—
Ashley Vega,
People.com,
3 Feb. 2025
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Press play above to find out (and also proactively lament the talking-to Amy is going to get afterwards).—
Matt Webb Mitovich,
TVLine,
3 Feb. 2025
Verb
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While mostly reading from prepared remarks, Levine Cava departed from the script early on when a granddaughter in the front row began crying about four minutes into the mayor’s speech.—
Douglas Hanks,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2025
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Along the way, Chihaya dedicated her life to reading.—
Kristen Martin,
The Atlantic,
31 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Really humble, looking to do extra, looking to learn from players, from coaches, eager to get better.—
Eduardo A. Encina,
Orlando Sentinel,
5 Feb. 2025
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Actors who have worked with Kelce describe him as eager to learn and a pleasure to be around on set – something that might sound very familiar to his football coaches over his career.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN,
5 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near swot
Cite this Entry
“Swot.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swot. Accessed 8 Feb. 2025.
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