cotton swab

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Dana relays that if there’s a part of Ilana’s skin that glows, she’ll swab it with a wet, then dry, cotton swab.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 19, 2026

The company, founded in San Francisco 2006, and having served 15 million individuals to-date, is one of a handful of genetic testing businesses whose customers mail in a cotton swab of their saliva.

From Salon • Mar. 28, 2025

Nor, it suggests, should users try inserting "a foreign object, such as a cotton swab or a paper towel" into their phone.

From BBC • Feb. 21, 2024

To get beans, you’ll have to hand-pollinate the flowers using a cotton swab or a small artist’s paintbrush to transfer pollen from one blossom to the next.

From Washington Times • Oct. 17, 2023

Billy Buck stood up from the box and surrendered the cotton swab.

From "The Red Pony" by John Steinbeck