Swift vs. Fast — What's the Difference?

Moving or capable of moving with great speed; fast.

Acting, moving, or capable of acting or moving quickly; swift.

Fast; quick; rapid.

Accomplished in relatively little time

Capable of moving at high speeds.

Acquired quickly with little effort and sometimes unscrupulously

A small plain-colored bird of the family Apodidae that resembles a swallow and is noted for its rapid flight.

Quick to understand or learn; mentally agile

Any of certain lizards of the genus Sceloporus.

Indicating a time somewhat ahead of the actual time

(entomology) A moth of the family Hepialidae, swift moth, ghost moth.

Allowing rapid movement or action

(entomology) Any of various fast-flying hesperiid butterflies.

Designed for or compatible with a short exposure time

(textiles) A light, collapsible reel used to hold a hank of yarn in order to wind off skeins or balls.

Disposed to dissipation; wild

The main cylinder of a carding-machine.

Flouting conventional moral standards; sexually promiscuous.

(obsolete) The current of a stream.

Resistant, as to destruction or fading

Swiftly.

Firmly fixed or fastened

Moving a great distance in a short time; moving with celerity or velocity; fleet; rapid; quick; speedy; prompt.

Fixed firmly in place; secure

Of short continuance; passing away quickly.

Lasting; permanent

Swiftly.

Deep; sound

The current of a stream.

In a secure manner; tightly

Any one of numerous species of small, long-winged, insectivorous birds of the family Micropodidæ. In form and habits the swifts resemble swallows, but they are destitute of complex vocal muscles and are not singing birds, but belong to a widely different group allied to the humming birds.

To a sound degree; deeply

Any one of several species of lizards, as the pine lizard.

In a rapid manner; quickly.

The ghost moth. See under Ghost.

In quick succession

A reel, or turning instrument, for winding yarn, thread, etc.; - used chiefly in the plural.

Ahead of the correct or expected time

The main card cylinder of a flax-carding machine.

In a dissipated, immoderate way

United States meat-packer who began the use of refrigerated railroad cars (1839-1903)

(Archaic) Close by; near.

An English satirist born in Ireland (1667-1745)

To abstain from food.

Small plain-colored bird that resembles a swallow and is noted for its rapid flight

To eat very little or abstain from certain foods, especially as a religious discipline.

Common western lizard; seen on logs or rocks

The act or practice of abstaining from or eating very little food.

Moving very fast;

A period of such abstention or self-denial.

(dated) Firmly or securely fixed in place; stable.

Firm against attack; fortified by nature or art; impregnable; strong.

(of people) Steadfast, with unwavering feeling. (Now mostly in set phrases like fast friend(s).)

Moving with great speed, or capable of doing so; swift, rapid.

Having a kinetic energy between 1 million and 20 million electron volts; often used to describe the energy state of free neutrons at the moment of their release by a nuclear fission or nuclear fusion reaction (i.e., before the neutrons have been slowed down by anything).

Of a place, characterised by business, hustle and bustle, etc.

Causing unusual rapidity of play or action.

Able to transfer data in a short period of time.

Deep or sound (of sleep); fast asleep (of people).

(of dyes or colours) Not running or fading when subjected to detrimental conditions such as wetness or intense light; permanent.

(obsolete) Tenacious; retentive.

(dated) Having an extravagant lifestyle or immoral habits.

Ahead of the correct time or schedule.

(of photographic film) More sensitive to light than average.

In a firm or secure manner, securely; in such a way as not to be moved; safe, sound .

(of sleeping) Deeply or soundly .

Immediately following in place or time; close, very near .

Quickly, with great speed; within a short time .

Ahead of the correct time or schedule.

A train that calls at only some stations it passes between its origin and destination, typically just the principal stations

The act or practice of fasting, religious abstinence from food

One of the fasting periods in the liturgical year

(archery) Short for "stand fast", a warning not to pass between the arrow and the target

(intransitive) To practice religious abstinence, especially from food.

To reduce or limit one's nutrition intake for medical or health reasons, to diet.

To abstain from food; to omit to take nourishment in whole or in part; to go hungry.

To practice abstinence as a religious exercise or duty; to abstain from food voluntarily for a time, for the mortification of the body or appetites, or as a token of grief, or humiliation and penitence.

Abstinence from food; omission to take nourishment.

Voluntary abstinence from food, for a space of time, as a spiritual discipline, or as a token of religious humiliation.

A time of fasting, whether a day, week, or longer time; a period of abstinence from food or certain kinds of food; as, an annual fast.

That which fastens or holds; especially, (Naut.) a mooring rope, hawser, or chain; - called, according to its position, a bow, head, quarter, breast, or stern fast; also, a post on a pier around which hawsers are passed in mooring.

Firmly fixed; closely adhering; made firm; not loose, unstable, or easily moved; immovable; as, to make fast the door.

Firm against attack; fortified by nature or art; impregnable; strong.

Firm in adherence; steadfast; not easily separated or alienated; faithful; as, a fast friend.

Permanent; not liable to fade by exposure to air or by washing; durable; lasting; as, fast colors.

Tenacious; retentive.

Not easily disturbed or broken; deep; sound.

Moving rapidly; quick in mition; rapid; swift; as, a fast horse.

Given to pleasure seeking; disregardful of restraint; reckless; wild; dissipated; dissolute; as, a fast man; a fast liver.

In such a condition, as to resilience, etc., as to make possible unusual rapidity of play or action; as, a fast racket, or tennis court; a fast track; a fast billiard table, etc.

In a fast, fixed, or firmly established manner; fixedly; firmly; immovably.

In a fast or rapid manner; quickly; swiftly; extravagantly; wildly; as, to run fast; to live fast.

Abstaining from food

Abstain from certain foods, as for religious or medical reasons;

Abstain from eating;

Acting or moving or capable of acting or moving quickly;

(used of timepieces) indicating a time ahead of or later than the correct time;

At a rapid tempo;

(of surfaces) conducive to rapid speeds;

Firmly fastened or secured against opening;

Resistant to destruction or fading;

Unrestrained by convention or morality;

Hurried and brief;

Securely fixed in place;

Unwavering in devotion to friend or vow or cause;

Quickly or rapidly (often used as a combining form);

Firmly or tightly;