Home Synonyms sway

Synonyms of sway in English:

sway


See US English definition of sway

See UK English definition of sway

See Spanish definition of balanceo

verb

1‘the curtains were swaying in the breeze’

SYNONYMS
swing, shake, oscillate, rock, undulate, move from side to side, move to and fro, move back and forth

2‘she swayed on her feet and the doctor put out a hand to steady her’

SYNONYMS
stagger, wobble, rock, lurch, reel, roll, list, stumble, pitch, keel, veer, swerve

3‘his thoughts sway constantly between the desire to go on and the desire to settle down’

SYNONYMS
waver, fluctuate, vacillate, oscillate, alternate, vary, see-saw, yo-yo, equivocate, hesitate, shilly-shally, go from one extreme to the other
British hum and haw
informal wobble, blow hot and cold

4‘a lot of people are swayed by the media’

SYNONYMS
influence, affect, bias, persuade, prevail on, bring round, talk round, win over, convert
manipulate, bend, mould
informal nobble

5‘she mustn't allow herself to be swayed by emotion’

SYNONYMS
rule, govern, dominate, control, direct, guide

noun

1‘the slow, easy sway of her hips’

SYNONYMS
swing, sweep, wave, roll, shake, movement, oscillation, undulation

2‘the province passed under the sway of the Franks’

SYNONYMS
jurisdiction, rule, government, sovereignty, dominion, control, command, power, authority, ascendancy, domination, mastery

3‘parliament is increasingly under the sway of dogmatists’

SYNONYMS
control, domination, power, authority, supremacy, influence, leadership, direction, leverage
informal pull, clout

Phrases

    hold sway

    ‘they had held sway in France for a quarter of a century’


    SYNONYMS
    hold power, wield power, exercise power, rule, be most powerful, be in power, be in control, predominate, have the ascendancy, have the greatest influence, have the upper hand, have the edge, have the whip hand, hold the whip hand
    informal run the show, be in the driving seat, be in the saddle