What does "draft" mean?
A current of air, usually coming into a room or vehicle.
Draft
adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·1 syllable ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A current of air, usually coming into a room or vehicle.
- Grammar: draft is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: a project, abbreviation, abbreviature, abrege.
- Useful contrasts: american history textbook edition, final copy, final print.
- Usage evidence: The committee approved the draft budget.
How to use "draft"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "draft" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "draft" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "draft" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "draft" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "draft" is acting as adj, noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "a project" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "draft", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A current of air, usually coming into a room or vehicle. US, countable, uncountable
- 2 the act of moving a load by drawing or pulling wordnet
- 3 The draw through a flue of gasses or smoke resulting from a combustion process. US, countable, uncountable
- 4 a large and hurried swallow wordnet
- 5 An act of drinking. US, countable, uncountable
Show 30 more definitions
- 6 compulsory military service wordnet
- 7 The quantity of liquid (such as water, alcohol, or medicine) drunk in one swallow. US, countable, uncountable
"to drink at a draft"
- 8 a dose of liquid medicine wordnet
- 9 A dose (of medicine, alcohol, etc.). US, countable, uncountable
- 10 a preliminary sketch of a design or picture wordnet
- 11 Liquid, especially beer or other alcohol, drawn from a cask or keg rather than a bottle or can. US, countable, uncountable
"From 1767 to 1774 no pale wine was bottled but for immediate use; only draft wine of all kinds was used in the principal taverns, and it was often very bad, not from tricks of the vintners, but from bad management."
- 12 a regulator for controlling the flow of air in a fireplace wordnet
- 13 The depth of water needed to float a particular ship; the depth from the waterline to the bottom of a vessel's hull; the depth of water drawn by a vessel. US, countable, uncountable
- 14 the depth of a vessel's keel below the surface (especially when loaded) wordnet
- 15 A version of a written work (such as a book or paper) or drawing. countable, uncountable
"I have to revise the first draft of my term paper."
- 16 any of the various versions in the development of a written work wordnet
- 17 An unsent e-mail. countable, uncountable
- 18 a serving of drink (usually alcoholic) drawn from a keg wordnet
- 19 A preliminary sketch or outline for a plan. countable, uncountable
- 20 a current of air (usually coming into a chimney or room or vehicle) wordnet
- 21 An order for money to be paid; the document that states it: a cheque, note, bond, bill of exchange, money order, or IOU. archaic, countable, uncountable
- 22 a document ordering the payment of money; drawn by one person or bank on another wordnet
- 23 Conscription; the system of forcing people to serve in the military. Canada, US, countable, uncountable, usually
"He left the country to avoid the draft."
- 24 A person who has been drafted; a conscript or draftee. countable, uncountable
"With these counsels, and many others equally valuable, did Papa Wick fortify Bobby ere that last awful night at Portsmouth when the Officers' Quarters held more inmates than were provided for by the Regulations, and the liberty-men of the ships fell foul of the drafts for India, and the battle raged from the Dockyard Gates even to the slums of Longport, while the drabs of Fratton came down and scratched the faces of the Queen's Officers."
- 25 A system of forcing or convincing people to take an elected position. US, countable, uncountable
- 26 A system of assigning rookie players to professional sports teams. US, countable, uncountable
- 27 A style of play in collectible card games, where players select from a shared pool of cards. countable, uncountable
- 28 A quantity that is requisitioned or drawn out from a larger population. British, English, archaic, countable, possibly, uncountable
"As an instance: amongst a draft of young hounds from Earl F itzwilliam's was one, of whom Will Deane, his huntsman, made this remark in his letter, 'that he could not guess at Lord Foley's dislike to the hound called Glider, then sent, which was of the best blood in the country, being got by Mr. Meynell's Glider out of Lord Fitzwilliam's Blossom, and was moreover the most promising young hound he had ever entered;..."
- 29 The pulling force (tension) on couplers and draft gear during a slack (stretched) condition. US, countable, uncountable
- 30 The bevel given to the pattern for a casting, so that it can be drawn from the sand without damaging the mould. countable, uncountable
- 31 The action or an act (especially of a beast of burden or vehicle) of pulling something along or back. US, archaic, countable, possibly, uncountable
"using oxen for draft"
- 32 The act of drawing in a net for fish. US, archaic, countable, possibly, uncountable
- 33 That which is drawn in; a catch; a haul. US, archaic, countable, possibly, uncountable
"He cast his net, which brought him a very great draft."
- 34 A small stream or tributary. Appalachia, countable, uncountable
"Crossing several ridges & hollows & two small drafts of water."
- 35 A ravine or narrow valley, especially one through which a stream (at least intermittently) flows. Appalachia, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West, countable, especially, uncountable
"[page 24:] About one quarter of a mile up the draft, the same blue-gray limestone is opened in a quarry on the Graham and Robinson farm, […] [page 31:] Up along a narrow draft heading south-east from the creek at Southern's place, a series of small pits and trenches have been dug close to the ridge […] above the level of the creek."
Verb
- 1 To write a first version; to make a preliminary sketch. transitive
- 2 engage somebody to enter the army wordnet
- 3 To draw in outline; to make a draught, sketch, or plan of, as in architectural and mechanical drawing.
- 4 make a blueprint of wordnet
- 5 To write a law.
Show 9 more definitions
- 6 draw up an outline or sketch for something wordnet
- 7 To select (someone or something) for a particular role or purpose.
"There was a campaign to draft Smith to run for President."
- 8 To select (someone or something) for a particular role or purpose.; To conscript (a person); to force (a person) to serve in some capacity, especially in the military. US, transitive
"He was drafted during the Vietnam War."
- 9 To select (someone or something) for a particular role or purpose.; To select and separate an animal or animals from a group.
"The calves were drafted from the cows."
- 10 To select (someone or something) for a particular role or purpose.; To select a rookie player onto a professional sports team. US, transitive
"After his last year of college football, he was drafted by the Miami Dolphins."
- 11 To follow very closely (behind another vehicle), thereby providing an aerodynamic advantage to both lead and follower and conserving energy or increasing speed. ambitransitive
"At the restart, the positions of the Mercedes drivers was reversed. Hamilton drafted Bottas down to Turn One and took the lead around the outside, controlling the race from there."
- 12 To draw out; to call forth.
- 13 To draw fibers out of a clump, for spinning in the production of yarn.
- 14 To play a collectible card game by selecting from a shared pool of cards.
Adjective
- 1 Referring to drinks on tap, in contrast to bottled. US, not-comparable
"I'd rather have a fresh, cheap draft beer."
- 2 Referring to animals used for pulling heavy loads. US, not-comparable
"A Clydesdale is a draft horse."
Synonyms
All synonymsAntonyms
american history textbook editionfinal copyfinal printfinal version
Example
"The committee approved the draft budget."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "draft"?
Common synonyms include: a project, abbreviation, abbreviature, abrege, abridgment, abstract.
How do you use "draft" in a sentence?
The committee approved the draft budget.
Etymology
A phonetic spelling of draught (compare laughter), from Middle English draught, draght (“that which is pulled; that which is drawn up, a design”), from Old English *dreaht, *dræht, from Proto-West Germanic *drahti, *drahtu, from Proto-Germanic *drahtuz (“a pulling, drawing”). Cognate with Dutch dracht, German Tracht, Icelandic dráttur. By surface analysis, draw + -t.