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Rapid vs Swiftly - What's the difference?

rapid | swiftly | Related terms |

As adverbs the difference between rapid and swiftly

is that rapid is rapidly while swiftly is in a swift manner; quickly; with quick motion or velocity; fleetly.

As an adjective rapid

is very swift or quick.

As a noun rapid

is a rough section of a river or stream which is difficult to navigate due to the swift and turbulent motion of the water.

rapid

English

Adjective

(en adjective)
  • Very swift or quick.
  • * (John Milton) (1608-1674)
    • Ascend my chariot; guide the rapid wheels.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1922, author=(Ben Travers), title=(A Cuckoo in the Nest)
    • , chapter=5 citation , passage=The most rapid and most seductive transition in all human nature is that which attends the palliation of a ravenous appetite. There is something humiliating about it.
  • * {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-21, author= Chico Harlan
    • , volume=189, issue=2, page=30, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly) , title= Japan pockets the subsidy … , passage=Across Japan, technology companies and private investors are racing to install devices that until recently they had little interest in: solar panels. Massive solar parks are popping up as part of a rapid build-up that one developer likened to an "explosion."}}
  • Steep, changing altitude quickly. (of a slope)
  • Needing only a brief exposure time. (of a lens, plate, film, etc.)
  • (England, dialectal) Violent, severe.
  • (obsolete, dialectal) Happy.

    • Adverb

    (en adverb)
  • (archaic or colloquial) Rapidly.

    • Noun

    (en noun)
  • (often, in the plural) a rough section of a river or stream which is difficult to navigate due to the swift and turbulent motion of the water.
  • (dated) A burst of rapid fire.

    • Related terms

    * rapt

    Derived terms

    * rapidity * rapidly * rapidness * ultrarapid

    Anagrams

    *

    swiftly

    English

    Adverb

    (en-adv)
  • In a swift manner; quickly; with quick motion or velocity; fleetly
  • * {{quote-news
    • , year=2011 , date=September 2 , author=Phil McNulty , title=Bulgaria 0-3 England , work=BBC citation , page= , passage=Gary Cahill, a target for Arsenal and Tottenham before the transfer window closed, put England ahead early on and Rooney was on target twice before the interval as the early hostility of the Bulgarian supporters was swiftly subdued.}}

    Synonyms

    * See also