How to Use sway in a Sentence

sway

1 of 2 noun
Definition of swaynext
Synonyms for swaynext
  • He has come under the sway of terrorists.
  • The ancient Romans held sway over most of Europe.
  • The first lady holds the most sway in Biden’s decision, aides say.
    — Josh Wingrove, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Nov. 2022
  • Just be sure to remind them to take some time to enjoy the gentle sway of the hammock in the wind and fresh air.
    — Rebecca Jones, Southern Living, 19 Feb. 2024
  • But in my new wife’s step and body all Those fading rhythms lingered and held sway.
    — Heather Wilhelm, National Review, 19 Jan. 2023
  • By midnight, the steady sway had sent us all into a deep and restful sleep.
    — Monisha Rajesh, Travel + Leisure, 23 Dec. 2023
  • Yet despite the distance between them, the sun still holds sway over the far-off planet.
    — Will Sullivan, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Aug. 2023
  • Even the vogue for Beardsley parody spoke to the artist’s sway.
    — Colton Valentine, The New Yorker, 13 Feb. 2023
  • That gentle sway is at the heart of McBride’s debut solo album.
    — Philip Sherburne, Pitchfork, 28 Aug. 2023
  • The sway in momentum was led by Nick Richards and Terry Rozier.
    — Robert Fenbers, cleveland, 18 Nov. 2022
  • The dumplings hold sway, and people are particular about how they're made.
    — Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 30 Dec. 2023
  • The pull of tides and the sway of nature were easier to decipher than the riddle within.
    — Jeffrey Fleishman, Chicago Tribune, 24 Dec. 2022
  • When Carson held sway, late-night rivals were few and far between.
    — Brian Steinberg, Variety, 17 Apr. 2023
  • Proof Of Investment Fear of the unknown is an easy sway away from success, but look at all the proof this year alone has to offer.
    — Sarah Mawji, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2023
  • But the sway the Koreans hold over the dining scene exceeds their numbers.
    — Pete Wells, New York Times, 29 Aug. 2023
  • On the grounds, bordering the golf course, are all manner of reminders that a power couple held sway.
    — Sacramento Bee, 30 Jan. 2024
  • That trend still holds sway in the workplaces of today – what are human resources, after all?
    — Bogdan Costea, Fortune, 30 Mar. 2023
  • Still stylish today, the lightly repoussé forms have an easy, gentle sway.
    — Beth Bernstein, Forbes, 3 Jan. 2023
  • In this new book, memory, and its absence, hold central sway.
    — Tahneer Oksman, Washington Post, 17 May 2023
  • Or a crinkled button-down, thrown on with no bra, tucked into a pair of underwear and cinched with a belt bag that shimmies with the sway of your hips.
    — Tara Gonzalez, Harper's BAZAAR, 6 Feb. 2023
  • The next two-plus weeks potentially hold massive sway over how the team approaches the Aug. 1 trade deadline.
    — Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 17 July 2023
  • So not just powerful people, but people whose voices have a lot of sway.
    — Clio Chang, Curbed, 13 Dec. 2023
  • In this, both composers were out of step with the high-modernist experimentalism that held sway in Europe and the U.S.
    — John Adams, The New Yorker, 4 Dec. 2023
  • At an early voting site in the much denser neighborhood of Courthouse, his message appeared to have a bit more sway.
    — Teo Armus, Washington Post, 31 Oct. 2022
  • Trump's sway in the party can be seen amongst the 40 new House Republicans, not just with the three who served in his administration.
    — Ben Kamisar, NBC News, 3 Jan. 2023
  • Sophie wasn’t a runaway, or a foster child, or an abused daughter, like many girls who fall under a predator’s sway.
    — Brittany Wallman, Sun Sentinel, 28 Nov. 2022
  • For a moment in time, with the bright lights and loud music, everyone in that room was sanctified under the holy sway of whatever Deion had to say.
    — Tyler R. Tynes, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2023
  • Meanwhile, the far right in quite a few European countries has co-opted or supplanted the center right that once held sway.
    — Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 21 July 2023
  • And as mother of Prince George, the future monarch, Kate holds tremendous sway, both in royal standing and public affection.
    — USA TODAY, 7 Feb. 2024
  • But the cities — and the two political parties — have changed a lot since then, even in the big Sun Belt metros where urban Republicans still hold some sway.
    — Ben Kamisar, NBC News, 16 May 2023
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sway

2 of 2 verb
  • The lawyer tried to sway the jury.
  • He swayed a moment before he fainted.
  • She persisted in her argument, but I wouldn't let her sway me.
  • Doomed to listen and be duped and swayed by the Siren’s Song.
    — Nick Canepa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Oct. 2023
  • As the shelves swayed, a $900 bottle of tequila slid off a top shelf.
    — Laura J. Nelson, Los Angeles Times, 22 Aug. 2023
  • And even then, there will be people who will not be swayed.
    — Helen Branswell, STAT, 22 Jan. 2024
  • Those concerns were not enough to sway the state’s high court.
    — Jenna Russell, New York Times, 17 Mar. 2023
  • The palm trees will sway gently and the mountains will glimmer in the distance.
    — Bill Dwyre, Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2024
  • At only half a pound, this wind chime is light enough to sway with even the lightest breeze.
    — Kate McGregor, Better Homes & Gardens, 24 Mar. 2023
  • The crowd swayed and sang along, and danced and roared with enthusiasm.
    — Tamar Herman, SPIN, 25 Dec. 2023
  • It can be used to sway teachers, courts, or electorates.
    — IEEE Spectrum, 6 Mar. 2023
  • Yet that hasn’t swayed the monks to crank up production.
    — Tori Latham, Robb Report, 6 Apr. 2023
  • But the lure of free treatments hasn’t swayed all our editors.
    — Elizabeth Siegel, Allure, 21 Aug. 2023
  • Prompted by shouts from the crowd — and Crawford's stylish swaying no doubt!
    — Jill Lupupa, Peoplemag, 19 July 2023
  • The group hopes that USC’s film school will see the logic in their union drive, or at least be swayed by the number of the group that has signed union cards.
    — Katie Kilkenny, The Hollywood Reporter, 29 Nov. 2023
  • Humans tend to be swayed by a good story over a good data set.
    — Paul Sutter, Ars Technica, 10 Jan. 2024
  • The photo showed a beautiful sunset over the beach with palm trees swaying in the wind.
    — Jordan Greene, Peoplemag, 22 Mar. 2024
  • The suspects’ main aim was to sway the Admiralty and the public.
    — David Grann, The New Yorker, 28 Feb. 2023
  • But something about the eagerness in Wexler swayed Joel to consider the idea.
    — Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 6 Feb. 2024
  • But his body sways evenly, a hand mapping the vocal peaks and valleys.
    — Hanif Abdurraqib, The New Yorker, 17 July 2023
  • So many, in fact, that I was eventually swayed to try the brand for myself.
    — Laura Gurfein, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024
  • The crowd of revelers swayed and danced to the music, cocktails in hand and raised to the sky in celebration.
    — Dwight Brown, Essence, 11 July 2023
  • Both swayed as the driver rumbled through downtown San Diego.
    — Blake Nelson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Feb. 2024
  • Everybody on the train kind of, like, swayed back and forth crazily, and there was a loud explosion.
    — Jesse Zanger, Alecia Reid, CBS News, 4 Jan. 2024
  • The fish swayed more gently with occasional bursts of quick movements when the lights were on.
    — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 26 Oct. 2023
  • Gently sway from side to side, reconnect with your emotions, and let go of all the worries of work.
    — Dulce Moncada, Glamour, 28 Sep. 2023
  • The rapper tried to blame the shooting on Megan’s friend and assistant, Kelsey Harris, but the jury wasn’t swayed.
    — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 27 Oct. 2023
  • Disney earnings rose after the bell thanks to the beat and the flurry of announcements, though the activists do not seem swayed.
    — Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Feb. 2024
  • The two could be seen fanning the performers with the score cards, swaying back and forth and letting their bodies groove to the music.
    — Rachel Desantis, Peoplemag, 14 Dec. 2023
  • Maybe we're swayed by the name, but this gorgeous neutral is like the perfect blended coffee drink.
    — Lindy Segal, Harper's BAZAAR, 28 Aug. 2023

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sway.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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