range is a general term indicating the extent of one's perception or the extent of powers, capacities, or possibilities.
the entire range of human experience
gamut suggests a graduated series running from one possible extreme to another.
a performance that ran the gamut of emotions
compass implies a sometimes limited extent of perception, knowledge, or activity.
your concerns lie beyond the narrow compass of this study
sweep suggests extent, often circular or arc-shaped, of motion or activity.
the book covers the entire sweep of criminal activity
scope is applicable to an area of activity, predetermined and limited, but somewhat flexible.
as time went on, the scope of the investigation widened
orbit suggests an often circumscribed range of activity or influence within which forces work toward accommodation.
within that restricted orbit they tried to effect social change
Example Sentences
Verb He swept the dirt off the driveway. He swept the crumbs from the table. I need to sweep the kitchen. Are you finished sweeping the porch? A storm swept across the plains. Fires swept through the forest. She proudly swept into the room. The limo swept up to the door. He swept the curtains aside. She swept the books off the desk. Noun Mrs. Griswold has been a teacher for so long that the sweep of her influence extends across three generations of the townspeople. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Jacob deGrom pitched seven shutout innings to lower his ERA to 1.66 and Francisco Lindor drove in three runs as visiting New York beat Pittsburgh 10-0 to sweep a doubleheader.San Francisco Chronicle, 7 Sep. 2022 Tyler Anderson dominates as the Dodgers sweep the Padres for their eighth consecutive win.Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2022 More than 88,000 Duke customers are without power as thunderstorms sweep through Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky. Quinlan Bentley, The Enquirer, 6 July 2022 As Taliban militants sweep across Afghanistan, concerns are growing for the toll on the country’s civilians, particularly women and girls. Melissa Mahtani, CNN, 12 Aug. 2021 After police raids sweep Changchun City, comic book illustrator Daxiong, a Falun Gong follower, is forced to flee and finds refuge in North America. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Aug. 2022 Pull out the oven drawer, sweep up any messes, or use a hand vacuum to get in all the crevices. Alicia Chilton, Better Homes & Gardens, 18 Aug. 2022 Kevin Pelton predicts that the Storm will sweep the series. Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 17 Aug. 2022 But White House officials said the intelligence community underestimated how quickly Taliban fighters would overpower Afghan forces and sweep into Kabul. Tim Craig, Washington Post, 14 Aug. 2022
Noun
Germán Márquez outpitched Max Scherzer, allowing one hit over seven innings and denying the New York Mets’ ace his 200th career win as the Colorado Rockies eked out a 1-0 victory Sunday to prevent a four-game sweep by the NL East leaders. Jerry Beach, Hartford Courant, 28 Aug. 2022 On Friday, police and university officials conducted a sweep of the dorms with K-9 units, according to CNN affiliate WUSA9. Jacquelyne Germain, CNN, 28 Aug. 2022 The third-seeded Pumas were stunned in the first round of the playoffs, but had an incredible regular season that featured a sweep over Hamilton. Theo Mackie, The Arizona Republic, 27 Aug. 2022 Ultimately, there was no need to keep up with the Nets, whose implosion has been well chronicled, including the first-round playoff sweep at the hands of the Boston Celtics. Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 27 Aug. 2022 In the second quarter, Joe Lott scored from 9 yards out on a speed sweep around left end. Randy Kennedy, al, 26 Aug. 2022 The Marlins, who are 54-70, rebounded from the L.A. sweep by winning two of three against Oakland over the weekend. John Scheibe, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2022 The hearing comes after residents filed a lawsuit and asked a federal judge to halt the sweep. Sarah Ravani, San Francisco Chronicle, 26 Aug. 2022 Ramírez’s third multi-homer game of the season and seven dominant shutout innings from Cal Quantrill led Cleveland to a 7-0 win and a two-game series sweep of the Padres. Joe Noga, cleveland, 24 Aug. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English swepen; akin to Old English swāpan to sweep, Old High German sweifen to wander