swatch

A piece, pattern, or sample, generally of cloth or a similar material.

He held a swatch of the wallpaper up to see if the colors would match the room.

[...] I beg you will go to Bailie Delap's shop, and get patterns of his best black bombaseen, and crape, and muslin, and bring them over to the parsonage, the morn's morning. [...] You will get, likewise, swatches of mourning print, with the lowest prices.

A selection of such samples bound together.

“Aisha, access the Pupa's informational color swatches. Okay, royal blue means the Pupa has kennel cough, cornflower blue means one of us just had a sex dream about the other one, navy blue means his Hulu plan is expiring, robin's egg blue means we get a free Xbox, Pacific blue means we all die at midnight!” [all gasp] “We were so close to gettin' that Xbox!”

A clump or portion of something.

I found myself truly moved by a stage event for the first time in years. I found myself humming tunes that one might not rightfully call tunes. Days later, I still remember these musical phrasings in little swatches of sound.

Mix ultramarine blue and alizarin crimson in your palette until you get a rich purple, then paint a swatch on dry watercolor paper [...]. Next paint a swatch of ultramarine blue on dry watercolor paper. While this is still wet, add alizarin crimson to the lower part of the blue wash, and watch the colors connect and blend [...]. Compare the two swatches.

A demonstration, an example, a proof.

Pray Sir, pay off the Old Debt, before I truſt you more New. This is a Swatch of Your Faith, and how much You are a Man of Your Word.

There were about nine score strangers in Midgehop; four score of them William Blaik entertained, [...]. And I believe their neighbour, Robert Bigger would be much the same. This I record once for all, for a swatch of the hospitality of the parish; for God has given this people a largeness of heart, to communicate of their substance, on these and other occasions also.

A tag or other small object attached to another item as a means of identifying its owner; a tally; specifically the counterfoil of a tally.

ITEM that the said Clerkis of the Brevements entre all the Taillis of the Furniunturs in the Jornall Booke in the Countynghous every day furthwith after the Brede be delyveret to the Pantre and then the Stoke [i.e., main part] of the Taill to by delyveret to the Baker and the Swache to the Pantler. … ITEM that the said Clerkis of the Brevements entre all the Taills of the Brasyantors in the Jornall Booke in the Countynghous at every tyme furthwith after the Bere be delyveret into the Buttry and then the Stoke of the Taill to be delyveret to the Brewar and the Swatche to the Butler.

A SWACHE, A Tally. N[orth] C[ountry]

To create a swatch, especially a sample of knitted fabric.

Swatching is important in knitting to obtain the correct gauge.

This season, before you even think about the makeup you need, think about the beige/grey/rust/brown colors—and the clothes—you've been seeing on the preceding pages (to remind you, we've swatched some of them here).

A channel or passage of water between sandbanks, or between a sandbank and a seashore.

It muſt be obſerved, that the paſſages, called Cockerlees, are no other than ſwatches through the Long-Sand.

The Swatch, or Swatch of no ground, a chaſm in the bank, is ſituated between the latitudes of 21° and 21° 22′ North, and the middle of it lies about 50 leagues Weſt of the meridian of the White Cliffs.