sweep
n.— «Someone at my company was jumpseating on FedEx and he said the crew told him he was on a flight that would do what was known as sweeps. Staying in the air for about an extra hour in case a plane broke down somewhere at an outstation.» —“FDX (and maybe UPS?) “Sweeps” – A Question from an Outsider” by contrails Airline Pilot Forums Dec. 29, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
When a teenager went a week without talking as part of a school project, he noticed a surprising side effect: Instead of rehearsing a response to what other people were saying to him, he was focused on listening — and feeling smarter as a result...
After misunderstanding the term tummy ache as tummy egg, a three-year-old has questions. This is part of a complete episode.
Related