swatch
noun
- small sample piece of material such as textile, leather, or paper
Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /swɒtʃ/ / /swɔt͡ʃ/ / /swɑt͡ʃ/
name
Etymology: From second watch or Swiss watch.
- A brand of relatively inexpensive Swiss analog watches.
noun
Etymology: Unknown; originally used chiefly in the East of England.
- A channel or passage of water between sandbanks, or between a sandbank and a seashore.
“It muſt be obſerved, that the paſſages, called Cockerlees, are no other than ſwatches through the Long-Sand.”
“The Swatch, or Swatch of no ground, a chaſm in the bank, is ſituated between the latitudes of 21° and 21° 22′ North, and the middle of it lies about 50 leagues Weſt of the meridian of the White Cliffs.”
verb
Etymology: From earlier Northern England dialectal swache (“the counterfoil or counterstock of a tally”) (1512); further etymology unknown. Cognate with Scots swach, swatch. Compare English swath, swathe. Compare also Old English swæcc (“taste; flavour; odour; fragrance”).
- To create a swatch, especially a sample of knitted fabric.
“Swatching is important in knitting to obtain the correct gauge.”
“This season, before you even think about the makeup you need, think about the beige/grey/rust/brown colors—and the clothes—you've been seeing on the preceding pages (to remind you, we've swatched some of them here).”