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Glite Dictionary
swab jockey

swab jockey

1 9.9
A person who collects samples and does simple routine tasks in a lab
  • noun
  • /swɑb ˈdʒɑki/
  • Slang
translation icon : técnico de laboratorio
  • Many swab jockeys work in hospitals.

Examples

  • Many swab jockeys work late shifts to ensure samples are collected promptly.

  • He started as a swab jockey before moving on to more advanced lab work.

  • As a swab jockey, following safety procedures is crucial to the job.

  • The swab jockey collected samples all day.

  • As a swab jockey, my job involves collecting samples for various tests in the lab.

  • Being a swab jockey means you have to work with different tools to gather patient samples.

  • The swab jockey carefully took samples from each patient to ensure accurate testing.

Synonyms

swabber
vsswab jockey
7.2

A person who collects samples from people for medical tests

is broader and informal, covering routine menial lab tasks beyond sample taking

Antonyms

specialist
352 3.9

A person who knows a lot about one area of work or study

expert
3 3.5

Very skilled and knowing a lot about a particular area

How Skilled

manager
∞ 1.6
technician
  • Specialized
184 3.7
intern
229 3.1
swab jockey
  • Slang
1 9.9
volunteer
7 3.5

Surface Forms

swab jockey singular
swab jockeys plural

Morphology

swab + jockey

The meaning is compositionally built from 'swab' (a sampling tool) plus 'jockey' (an agent/operater), so it denotes a person who works with or operates swabs. This agentive compounding pattern (cf. 'disk jockey') is productive in English and would be inferable by a B1 learner who knows both constituents.

Etymology

Swab jockey comes from the image of a person holding a swab and moving quickly like a jockey from place to place. So the phrase is used for someone who does 'routine' lab jobs, such as 'collecting samples', rather than advanced tests.