swathe

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
swathe1 /sweɪð/ (chiefly N. Amer. also swath /swɔːθ, swɒθ/)

▶noun (pl. swathes /sweɪðz/ or swaths /sweɪðz, swɒθs/)

• 1 a row or line of grass, corn, etc. as it falls when mown or reaped.

• 2 a broad strip or area: vast swathes of land.

– phrases
cut a swathe through pass through (an area) causing destruction or upheaval.
cut a wide swathe N. Amer. attract much attention.

– origin OE swæth, swathu ‘track, trace’, of W. Gmc origin.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
swathe2 /sweɪð/

▶verb wrap in several layers of fabric. ▶noun a strip of material in which something is wrapped.

– origin OE swath- (n.), swathian (v.); cf. swaddle.