swab / swäb/ • n. 1. an absorbent pad or piece of material used in surgery and medicine for cleaning wounds, applying medication, or taking specimens. ∎  a specimen of a secretion taken with a swab for examination: he had taken throat swabs. ∎  a piece of absorbent material used for cleaning the bore of a firearm, a woodwind instrument, etc.2. a mop or other absorbent device for cleaning or mopping up a floor or other surface.3. another term for swabbie.• v. (swabbed, swab·bing) [tr.] clean (a wound or surface) with a swab: swabbing down the decks swab a patch of skin with alcohol. ∎  absorb or clear (moisture) with a swab: the blood was swabbed away.

swab mop XVI; absorbent mass of fabric for cleansing XVIII. f. Gmc. base meaning ‘sway about’, ‘splash in water’, as in (M)LG. swabben splash, sway, Norw. svabba splash, wade, LG. swabber (G. schwabber) mop, swab, Du. zwabberen mop.
So swab vb. (dial.) sway about XV; mop up XVIII. swabber (-ER1) member of a crew that swabs decks. XVI.

swab (swob) n. a pad of absorbent material (such as cotton), sometimes attached to a stick or wire, that is used for cleaning out or applying medication to wounds, operation sites, or body cavities.