a long piece of land, especially one on which the plants or crops have been cut （尤指割了庄稼的）一长条田地 The combine had cut a swathe around the edge of the field. 联合收割机把庄稼绕田边割了一长条。 Development has affected vast swathes of our countryside. 开发建设影响了乡村广大地区。
Extra ExamplesThe war had cut a swathe of destruction across northern France. 这场战争在法国北部造成了巨大的破坏。 The Great Plains of the US cover a vast swathe of land. 美国的大平原覆盖了大片土地。 The rainforest forms a swathe of jungle in West Africa. 雨林在西非形成了一片丛林。
a large piece or area of something 一长条；一长片 The mountains rose above a swathe of thick cloud. 群峰耸立在云海之上。 The front door was open and a swathe of sunlight lay across the floor. 前门开着，一缕阳光洒在地板上。
Word Originnoun Old English swæth, swathu ‘track, trace’, of West Germanic origin; related to Dutch zwad(e) and German Schwade. In Middle English the term denoted a measure of the width of grassland, probably reckoned by a sweep of the mower's scythe.
Idioms
cut a swathe through something
(of a person, fire, etc. 人、火等 to pass through a particular area destroying a large part of it 把（某地的一大片）夷为平地；使…大部分遭受破坏 Building the tunnel would involve cutting a great swathe through the forest. 建造隧道需要在森林里砍出一大片。