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Original · left

Swipe (strike or steal)

To hit with a sweeping motion, or to steal.

First in use: the 1800s
Duplicate · right

Swipe (gesture)

A touchscreen gesture of sliding a finger across the display.

First in use: c. 2007

Swipe / Swipe (strike or steal) / Swipe (gesture)

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Canonical todayMeasuring…
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Duplicate share · 12 mo—
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Colour keyGrey · original meaningGreen · duplicate meaningAmber · contested (40–60%)How colours work

Stealing vs. Tinder.

Which meaning of Swipe is the original, and which one is the duplicate riding on its name? Swipe (strike or steal) came first (the 1800s). Swipe (gesture) arrived in 2007. The data below shows which one owns the word now.

Wikipedia pageviews since 2015

Swipe (strike or steal)Swipe (gesture)
English Wikipedia pageviews since July 2015 load here.

Duplicate's share of attention

Green line = duplicate's % · above 60 it owns the word · below 40 the original does

Share-of-attention line loads here.

The case for each meaning

Sourced definitions, usage stats and quotes

Original · the 1800s

Swipe (strike or steal)

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Duplicate · c. 2007

Swipe (gesture)

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