Sweeping describes something that covers a large area or range, like a sweeping view from a mountaintop that lets you see for miles in every direction, or sweeping changes to a school's rules that affect everyone in the building.

When something is sweeping, it's broad and far-reaching rather than small and specific. A sweeping statement makes a big claim about many things at once: “All vegetables taste terrible” is a sweeping statement because it lumps every vegetable together. A sweeping victory in an election means winning by a huge margin across many districts. A sweeping gesture with your arm covers a wide arc through the air.

The word often suggests drama or grandeur. A sweeping staircase in a mansion curves dramatically from floor to floor. A sweeping orchestral score in a movie swells with emotion. But sweeping can also mean too broad: sweeping generalizations oversimplify complicated topics by ignoring important details and exceptions.