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sway
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
sway
I.verb
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
be blowing/swaying/flapping etc in the wind
▪ The trees were all swaying in the wind.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADVERB
gently
▪ The summer sun spilled over the gardens, the trees swayed gently, the leaves rustling like soft, applauding hands.
▪ Bayfront Park, lined with gently swaying Palm trees, was a marked contrast to the gravity of the day.
▪ He was still fishing, the line plumbing the depths of the water, gently swaying in the light breeze.
▪ The peacock silk curtains swayed gently in the breeze.
▪ There he was silently surveying the world, swaying gently on a twig near the top of the tree!
slightly
▪ You see, the fellow didn't walk, he had this strange mincing walk, hips slightly swaying.
▪ The right panel dangled from its upper hinge, swaying slightly, its rusted hinge producing a soft, musical squeak.
▪ He emerged swearing softly at himself and swaying slightly.
▪ She held him with her eyes closed, swaying slightly.
▪ To her horror, Agnes saw that the old woman was swaying slightly.-The Count smiled. ` Excellent!
▪ He stood on the moonlit grass, swaying slightly, holding himself upright but still fast asleep.
▪ The figure swayed slightly on its base, then was still.
▪ He stood for a moment, his body swaying slightly.
■ NOUN
hold
▪ It is difficult to establish which of the two scientific theories could hold sway.
▪ This of course benefits the income of the less expensive factor of production, as is inevitable when capital holds sway.
opinion
▪ These arguments have yet to sway public opinion.
▪ Others said they have already decided who will get their vote, and the vice presidential selection will not sway their opinion.
tree
▪ Monkeying around Above the rainforest in Kakum, the trees are swaying a little more violently than usual.
▪ Palm trees sway on the backs of countless cotton shirts.
▪ The dappled night shadows, the inky blue trees sway lightly in the breeze.
▪ In the distance a few lights from Five Oaks blinked through the apple and pine trees swaying in the wind.
▪ At the bottom of the hill, six poplar trees swayed, graceful as girls with their hair long.
▪ The trees swayed and sighed gently in the soft wind.
▪ Pine trees, swayed by the north wind, whisper; the bracken sighs.
▪ Palm trees are swaying in the breeze, skies are blue and the sea is even bluer.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ A light wind was making the branches sway.
▪ Donny swayed drunkenly as he walked back to his car.
▪ Ed's parents never tried to sway him, but they are happy with the decision he's made.
▪ Insecure people are often easily swayed by flattery.
▪ Mel swayed her hips in time with the music.
▪ The boat swayed from side to side in the storm.
▪ The court is unlikely to be swayed by those arguments.
▪ The judge was not swayed by her apology.
▪ The ski lifts were swaying alarmingly from side to side.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ Before long I had rejoined the tribe, swaying shoulder to shoulder with them as I thumped on a cast-iron pan.
▪ But, again, he failed to sway the jury, which returned a first-degree murder verdict.
▪ On the way I noticed that the pavement swayed from side to side and the road heaved up and down.
▪ They groped their way to a plastic table and sat facing the swaying shadows at the bar.
▪ We could do pullups on the steady, immobile high bar instead of on our clanking, swaying ceiling pipes.
▪ We should never allow ourselves to be swayed by our feelings.
▪ Without influence in Delhi or among the Tamils she was powerless to sway events.
II.noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ VERB
hold
▪ The game afoot has gone way beyond technology into the realm of perception where Microsoft Corp holds almost total sway.
▪ That romantic notion held sway over me, and probably delayed my perception of Clarisa as some one with a medical problem.
▪ The Marsh End at that time had at least two moles who held sway in their different ways over moles of their generation.
▪ Suddenly new possibilities are springing to life where previously deadlock and despair held sway.
▪ It's a place for Comici's drop-of-water philosophy to hold sway.
▪ But even vaporized as the bond market is, it holds tremendous sway over our times.
▪ She knew that in prison time no longer holds the same sway as in the free world outside.
▪ Gothic art held sway, in general, for three centuries.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
hold sway
▪ The old communist party still holds sway in many rural areas.
▪ This all happened long ago, when priests held sway over the majority of the Irish people.
▪ His reputedly Herculean virility long remained a byword throughout the district over which he held sway.
▪ It's a place for Comici's drop-of-water philosophy to hold sway.
▪ Nearly 10 years later, she still holds sway on Wall Street.
▪ Suddenly new possibilities are springing to life where previously deadlock and despair held sway.
▪ That is why we feel justified in saying that Realism has held sway for the last forty years.
▪ That romantic notion held sway over me, and probably delayed my perception of Clarisa as some one with a medical problem.
▪ The Marsh End at that time had at least two moles who held sway in their different ways over moles of their generation.
▪ This of course benefits the income of the less expensive factor of production, as is inevitable when capital holds sway.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ No one has more sway with Congress than the media.
▪ the constant sway of the small aircraft
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ Nearly 10 years later, she still holds sway on Wall Street.
▪ Nineteenth-century forms and styles held sway until the 1920s when they were replaced by their horrendous antithesis - Functionalism.
▪ That boy had held such sway.
▪ The sway of the crowd sent him sprawling.
▪ The line weaves back and forth in the water, in sinister sway.
▪ The same attitudes held sway in Vienna.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Sway

Sway \Sway\ (sw[=a]), v. i.

  1. To be drawn to one side by weight or influence; to lean; to incline.

    The balance sways on our part.
    --Bacon.

  2. To move or swing from side to side; or backward and forward.

  3. To have weight or influence.

    The example of sundry churches . . . doth sway much.
    --Hooker.

  4. To bear sway; to rule; to govern.

    Hadst thou swayed as kings should do.
    --Shak.

Sway

Sway \Sway\ (sw[=a]), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Swayed; p. pr. & vb. n. Swaying.] [OE. sweyen, Icel. sveigja, akin to E. swing; cf. D. zwaaijen to wield, swing. See Swing, and cf. Swag, v. i.]

  1. To move or wield with the hand; to swing; to wield; as, to sway the scepter.

    As sparkles from the anvil rise, When heavy hammers on the wedge are swayed.
    --Spenser.

  2. To influence or direct by power and authority; by persuasion, or by moral force; to rule; to govern; to guide.

    The will of man is by his reason swayed.
    --Shak.

    She could not sway her house.
    --Shak.

    This was the race To sway the world, and land and sea subdue.
    --Dryden.

  3. To cause to incline or swing to one side, or backward and forward; to bias; to turn; to bend; warp; as, reeds swayed by wind; judgment swayed by passion.

    As bowls run true by being made On purpose false, and to be swayed.
    --Hudibras.

    Let not temporal and little advantages sway you against a more durable interest.
    --Tillotson.

  4. (Naut.) To hoist; as, to sway up the yards.

    Syn: To bias; rule; govern; direct; influence; swing; move; wave; wield.

Sway

Sway \Sway\, n.

  1. The act of swaying; a swaying motion; the swing or sweep of a weapon.

    With huge two-handed sway brandished aloft.
    --Milton.

  2. Influence, weight, or authority that inclines to one side; as, the sway of desires.
    --A. Tucker.

  3. Preponderance; turn or cast of balance.

    Expert When to advance, or stand, or turn the sway Of battle.
    --Milton.

  4. Rule; dominion; control.
    --Cowper.

    When vice prevails, and impious men bear sway, The post of honor is a private station.
    --Addison.

  5. A switch or rod used by thatchers to bind their work. [Prov. Eng.]
    --Halliwell.

    Syn: Rule; dominion; power; empire; control; influence; direction; preponderance; ascendency.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
sway

early 14c., "move, go, go quickly; move (something) along, carry," probably from a Scandinavian source akin to Old Norse sveigja "to bend, swing, give way," Old Danish svegja, perhaps merged with an unrecorded Old English cognate. The whole group might be related to swag (v.) and swing (v.).\n

\nThe sense of "swing, waver, move in a swaying or sweeping motion" is from late 14c. Meaning "move from side to side" is from c.1500; transitive sense "cause to move from side to side" is from 1550s (according to OED, not common before 19c.). Figurative sense "cause to be directed toward one side, prejudice" is from 1590s. Related: Swayed; swaying.

sway

c.1300, "movement from side to side," from sway (v.). The meaning "controlling influence" (as in to be under the sway of) is from 1510s, from a transitive sense of the verb in Dutch and other languages.

Wiktionary
sway

n. 1 The act of swaying; a swaying motion; a swing or sweep of a weapon. 2 A rocking or swinging motion. 3 influence, weight, or authority that inclines to one side; as, the sway of desires. 4 Preponderance; turn or cast of balance. 5 Rule; dominion; control. 6 A switch or rod used by thatchers to bind their work. 7 The maximum amplitude of a vehicle's lateral motion vb. 1 To move or swing from side to side; or backward and forward; to rock. 2 To move or wield with the hand; to swing; to wield. 3 To influence or direct by power, authority, persuasion, or by moral force; to rule; to govern; to guide. Compare ''persuade''. 4 To cause to incline or swing to one side, or backward and forward; to bias; to turn; to bend; warp. 5 (lb en nautical) To hoist (a mast or yard) into position. 6 To be drawn to one side by weight or influence; to lean; to incline. 7 To have weight or influence. 8 To bear sway; to rule; to govern.

WordNet
sway
  1. n. controlling influence

  2. pitching dangerously to one side [syn: rock, careen, tilt]

  3. v. move back and forth or sideways; "the ship was rocking"; "the tall building swayed"; "She rocked back and forth on her feet" [syn: rock, shake]

  4. move or walk in a swinging or swaying manner; "He swung back" [syn: swing]

  5. win approval or support for; "Carry all before one"; "His speech did not sway the voters" [syn: carry, persuade]

  6. cause to move back and forth; "rock the cradle"; "rock the baby"; "the wind swayed the trees gently" [syn: rock]

Wikipedia
Sway (song)

"Sway" is the English version of "¿Quién será?", a 1953 mambo instrumental song by Mexican composers Luis Demetrio and Pablo Beltrán Ruiz. The most famous English version is that of Dean Martin recorded in 1954. English lyrics are by Norman Gimbel. Since then the song has been recorded and remixed by many artists (see discography below).

Sway (musician)

Derek Andrew Safo (born 5 September 1982), better known by his stage name Sway or Sway DaSafo or is a British artist of Akan descent. He is also a producer, having established Dcypha Productions, signed to Island/Universal (Label Founder). Safo's 2008 record 'Black Stars' gave kudos to popular Ghanaians across the Diaspora. Sway's first big track 'On My Own' was released under the name Sway DaSafo.

Sway

Sway may refer to:

Sway (comics)

Sway (Suzanne Chan) is a fictional comic book superhero, a mutant in the Marvel Comics Universe. She first appeared in X-Men: Deadly Genesis #3 as one of the "Missing X-Men". She was created by writer Ed Brubaker and artist Pete Woods.

Sway (dance)

The term sway has a specific meaning in the technique of ballroom dances. Sway describes a dancer's body position in which the entire body gracefully deflects from the vertical. Entrance to and exit from this position are matters of fine technical detail and differ in various dance figures.

Sway may be an element of both stationary and moving dance figures. In moving figures, sway is commonly achieved as a natural result of body swing, but small amounts from other sources may be useful as an inflection. Sway comes primarily from an incline of the entire body, but a portion may also come from gradual bending of the trunk. It is customary to consider any bending of the trunk to occur more as a stretching of one side of the rib cage more than as a compression of the other side. This description helps to produce sway without the body line breaking awkwardly at the waist. Substantial abdominal strength may be needed to fully utilize this technique.

Possible angles of sway range from having the upper body substantially trailing the lower through a movement, to having the upper body a very small amount in advance. The purposes of sway are both better control of dance motion and aesthetics.

Sway (Bic Runga song)

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"Sway" is a 1997 New Zealand music single by Bic Runga. It appeared on her first album, Drive, and it was featured in the 1999 film American Pie as well as the 2012 American Reunion. It was released in 1998 in Germany, Australia, and twice in the United Kingdom. It was also released in the United States. In 2001 it was voted 6th best New Zealand song of all time by members of APRA. An acoustic version of the song can be found on the charity album Even Better than the Real Thing Vol. 2.

Sway (The Rolling Stones song)

"Sway" is a song by English rock 'n roll band The Rolling Stones from their 1971 album Sticky Fingers. It was also released as the b-side of the " Wild Horses" single in June 1971. This single was released in the US only. Initial pressings of the single contain an alternate take; later pressings include the album version instead.

Credited to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, "Sway" is a slower blues song and was the first song recorded by the band at Stargroves.

The song features a bottleneck slide guitar solo during the bridge and a dramatic, virtuoso outro solo (both performed by Mick Taylor). Rhythm guitar performed by Jagger was his first electric guitar performance on an album. The strings on the piece were arranged by Paul Buckmaster, who also worked on other songs from Sticky Fingers. Richards added his backing vocals but provided no guitar to the track. Pete Townshend, Billy Nichols and Ronnie Lane are believed to contribute backing vocals as well.

It was performed live for the first time in Columbus, Ohio, and then at many of the shows on the band's A Bigger Bang Tour in 2006.

A seven-minute version of "Sway" appears on the Carla Olson/Mick Taylor Live at the Roxy album aka Too Hot for Snakes. Taylor gets to stretch out and solo whereas the Stones version faded at just under four minutes. ( Ian McLagan plays piano on this version).

During the Stones' " 50 & Counting" concert tour in 2013, the band, accompanied by their guest Mick Taylor, played "Sway" during concerts at Los Angeles, Chicago and Boston. These concerts marked the first time that Taylor played on "Sway" at a Stones concert.

Sway (The Kooks song)

"Sway" is a song by British indie rock band The Kooks and is the third and final single of their second album Konk. It was released physically on October 10, 2008. The track is also featured in the I Love You, Beth Cooper soundtrack.

Sway (film)

is a 2006 mystery-drama film, directed by Japanese director Miwa Nishikawa, which features sibling rivalry and a possible murder.

Sway (video game)

Sway is a platform game for the iOS published by Illusion Labs and developed by ReadyFireAim. It was released worldwide on February 23, 2009 via the App Store.

Sway (book)

Sway is a 2014 young adult fiction book by American author Kat Spears and her debut novel. The work was first published on 16 September 2014 through St. Martin's Griffin and is a modern take on the story of Cyrano de Bergerac.

Sway (Whirr album)

Sway is the second studio album by American alternative rock band Whirr, released on September 23, 2014 by Graveface Records. The album marked the departure of previous lead singer Alexandra Monte. It was produced by Jack Shirley.

Sway (album)

Sway is the seventh studio album by Blue October. It was recorded at Fire Station Studio in San Marcos, Texas with co-producer David Castell in February and March 2013. Additional recording sessions for strings and vocal overdubs took place at Test Tube Audio in Austin, Texas in April 2013, and the album was mixed at Studio 62 in Austin by Tim Palmer between May and July 2013. Production credit for the album is shared between Justin Furstenfeld, David Castell and Tim Palmer. Castell previously produced Blue October's album History For Sale and co-produced Foiled, while Palmer produced the band's album Any Man in America and mixed History for Sale. The first single from the album, "Bleed Out" impacted radio on June 6, 2013 and became available for sale at digital outlets on June 25. A music video for the single was filmed in Dallas, Texas on June 15 with director Norry Niven. "Bleed Out" was a top 25 single on the Billboard alternative radio chart. The song "Angels in Everything" was released as a single in Germany, and to date has reached number 25 on the radio charts. The album's title track, "Sway" was released to radio as the third single on February 11, 2014 and a video, directed by Bongani Mlambo was released April 23, 2014. The album debuted at #13 on the Billboard Top 200, #1 on the Billboard Alternative Albums, #2 on the Billboard Independent Albums, #3 on the Billboard Top Rock Albums, #10 on the Billboard Digital Albums, and #8 on iTunes. The album was rated the 2nd best album of 2013 (in a tie with David Bowie's The Next Day) by German music magazine Kulturnews. Sway also won Reader’s Choice for Best Album in the Austin Music Blogger Awards.

The band financed the production of the album through a PledgeMusic campaign which they began on April 2, 2013. The project reached its goal on April 5, 2013, and as of August 14 has reached 263 percent of the goal and received 4,252 pledges. To raise money for the campaign, the band offered such items as music lessons, signed instruments, exclusive artwork, spots in a music video, and concert tickets for life. Five percent of the proceeds were donated to the MusicCares Foundation.

Like Blue October's previous album, Any Man in America, Sway was released on the band's independent label Up/Down Records. North American distribution is through Megaforce Records, one of Sony Red's indies, with European distribution by Membran Records. Like the band's two previous albums, Sway was released on vinyl in addition to digital download and CD format.

Usage examples of "sway".

Thick was sitting on the deck at my feet, his eyes closed, swaying miserably, his music a queasy accompaniment to the rhythm of his body.

He wondered at the amazingness that was her back end as she swayed ahead of him.

The small bustle at the back of her gown caused the bronze-and-red-striped skirts of the dress to sway in an elegant, enticing manner that Ambrose was certain he could have studied for hours.

Then Antelope caught it and she started swaying and curtseying to Bear and Grizzly.

Andy wondered whether they were all caught under the sway of some long gone but powerful personality, perhaps the very one who had caused antimacassar to be piled upon antimacassar.

Trailing shoots of the bougainvillea swayed in the night breeze, and a branch of Banksia roses struck him, the clusters of blossom making a scented rain upon his face.

Suddenly the basto stopped in its tracks, its feet spread swaying weakly.

The basto stopped, its four legs spread wide for an instant it swayed, and then it crashed to the ground at the feet of Kamlot.

This peace-lulled, beguiling, sea, teeming with myriad forms scintillating on the verge of nothingness--obscure, elusive, yet mighty in their wayward way--soothed with never so gentle, so dulcet a swaying.

Maia took long, shuddering gasps as blurry shapes congealed into silhouettes and finally soot-streaked faces, starkly outlined by swaying bulbs.

To see him pad his paunch with dainty cheer, Puff his perfecto, swill champagne, and sway Just like a gentleman, yet all in play, Then bow himself off stage with brutish leer.

Count Burian gave way as Foreign Minister to the anti-Magyar Czernin, though Tisza himself maintained his despotic sway in Hungary until his murder in 1918.

Isabella, her dark hair whipping around her, whirled and swayed her body sensuously as she dance toward Burr, displaying every seductive curve of her body before his smiling gaze.

Change our homuncules, and observe forthwith How the High Influence sways the English realm, And how the jacks lip out their reasonings there.

A born horsewoman, she had watched with breathless admiration the onrush of the loose-rein riders--the graceful swaying of their bodies, and the flapping of soft hat brims, as their horses approached with a thunder of pounding hoofs.