What does "drift" mean?
Movement; that which moves or is moved.; Anything driven at random.
Drift
/dɹɪft/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Movement; that which moves or is moved.; Anything driven at random.
- Grammar: drift is listed as noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: movement, trend, aberrancy, aberration.
- Useful contrasts: steady focus technique, anchor, anchoring.
- Usage evidence: Many people drift through life without a purpose.
How to use "drift"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "drift" 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
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- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
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- 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 "drift" 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 "drift" as the right word for your sentence.
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "drift" is acting as noun, verb in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
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3. Confirm with context
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Final meaning check
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; Anything driven at random. countable, physical, uncountable
"Some log perhaps upon the waters swam, a useless drift."
- 2 a horizontal (or nearly horizontal) passageway in a mine wordnet
- 3 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; A mass of matter which has been driven or forced onward together in a body, or thrown together in a heap, etc., especially by wind or water. countable, physical, uncountable
"a drift of snow, of ice, of sand, of plants, etc."
- 4 the pervading meaning or tenor wordnet
- 5 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; The distance through which a current flows in a given time. countable, physical, uncountable
Show 35 more definitions
- 6 a general tendency to change (as of opinion) wordnet
- 7 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; A drove or flock, as of cattle, sheep, birds. countable, physical, uncountable
"cattle coming over the bridge (with their great drifts doing much damage to the high ways)"
- 8 a large mass of material that is heaped up by the wind or by water currents wordnet
- 9 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; A collection of loose earth and rocks, or boulders, which have been distributed over large portions of the earth's surface, especially in latitudes north of forty degrees, by the retreat of continental glaciers, such as that which buries former river valleys and creates young river valleys. countable, physical, uncountable
"It is there seen that at a distance from the valleys of streams, the old glacial drift usually comes to the surface, and often rises into considerable eminences."
- 10 a force that moves something along wordnet
- 11 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; Driftwood included in flotsam washed up onto the beach. countable, physical, uncountable
- 12 the gradual departure from an intended course due to external influences (as a ship or plane) wordnet
- 13 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; A driving; a violent movement. countable, obsolete, physical, uncountable
"The dragon drew him [self] away with drift of his wings."
- 14 a process of linguistic change over a period of time wordnet
- 15 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; Course or direction along which anything is driven; setting. countable, physical, uncountable
"Our drift was south."
- 16 Movement; that which moves or is moved.; That which is driven, forced, or urged along. countable, physical, uncountable
"The desert storm was riding in its strength; the travellers lay beneath the mastery of the fell simoom.[…]Drifts of yellow vapour, fiery, parching, stinging, filled the air."
- 17 The act or motion of drifting; the force which impels or drives; an overpowering influence or impulse. countable, uncountable
"A bad man, being under the drift of any passion, will follow the impulse of it till something interpose."
- 18 A place (a ford) along a river where the water is shallow enough to permit crossing to the opposite side. countable, uncountable
- 19 The tendency of an act, argument, course of conduct, or the like; object aimed at or intended; intention; hence, also, import or meaning of a sentence or discourse; aim. countable, uncountable
"The Gods defenders of the innocent, Will neuer proſper your intended driftes, That thus oppreſſe poore friendles paſſengers."
- 20 The horizontal thrust or pressure of an arch or vault upon the abutments. countable, uncountable
- 21 A tool.; A slightly tapered tool of steel for enlarging or shaping a hole in metal, by being forced or driven into or through it; a broach. countable, uncountable
- 22 A tool.; A tool used to pack down the composition contained in a rocket, or like firework. countable, uncountable
- 23 A tool.; A tool used to insert or extract a removable pin made of metal or hardwood, for the purpose of aligning and/or securing two pieces of material together. countable, uncountable
- 24 A deviation from the line of fire, peculiar to obloid projectiles. countable, uncountable
- 25 Minor deviation of audio or video playback from its correct speed. uncountable
"Reference sync servo system — permits minimal time-base error, assuring minimum jitter and drift."
- 26 The situation where a performer gradually and unintentionally moves from their proper location within the scene. uncountable
"There is another form of drift when playing in a scene with other actors."
- 27 A passage driven or cut between shaft and shaft; a driftway; a small subterranean gallery. countable, uncountable
- 28 An adit or tunnel driven forward for purposes of exploration or exploitation; generally eventually to a dead end. countable, uncountable
- 29 A sloping winze or road to the surface, for purposes of haulage. countable, uncountable
- 30 In a coal mine, a heading driven for exploration or ventilation. countable, uncountable
- 31 Of a boring or a driven tunnel: deviation from the intended course. countable, uncountable
- 32 A heading driven through a seam of coal. countable, uncountable
- 33 Movement.; The angle which the line of a ship's motion makes with the meridian, in drifting. countable, uncountable
- 34 Movement.; The distance a vessel is carried off from her desired course by the wind, currents, or other causes. countable, uncountable
- 35 Movement.; The place in a deep-waisted vessel where the sheer is raised and the rail is cut off, and usually terminated with a scroll, or driftpiece. countable, uncountable
- 36 Movement.; The distance between the two blocks of a tackle. countable, uncountable
- 37 Movement.; The difference between the size of a bolt and the hole into which it is driven, or between the circumference of a hoop and that of the mast on which it is to be driven. countable, uncountable
- 38 A sideways movement of the ball through the air, when bowled by a spin bowler. countable, uncountable
- 39 Slow, cumulative change. countable, uncountable
"genetic drift"
- 40 In the New Forest National Park, UK, the bi-annual round-up of wild ponies in order to sell them. countable, uncountable
Verb
- 1 To move slowly, especially pushed by currents of water, air, etc. intransitive
"The boat drifted away from the shore."
- 2 be piled up in banks or heaps by the force of wind or a current wordnet
- 3 To move haphazardly without any destination. intransitive
"He drifted from town to town, never settling down."
- 4 be subject to fluctuation wordnet
- 5 To deviate gently from the intended direction of travel. intransitive
"This car tends to drift left at high speeds."
Show 14 more definitions
- 6 drive slowly and far afield for grazing wordnet
- 7 To drive or carry, as currents do a floating body. transitive
"1865-1866, John Henry Newman, Apologia Pro Vita Sua I was drifted back first to the ante - Nicene history , and then to the Church of Alexandria"
- 8 cause to be carried by a current wordnet
- 9 To drive into heaps. transitive
"A current of wind drifts snow or sand"
- 10 move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment wordnet
- 11 To accumulate in heaps by the force of wind; to be driven into heaps. intransitive
"Snow or sand drifts."
- 12 be in motion due to some air or water current wordnet
- 13 To make a drift; to examine a vein or ledge for the purpose of ascertaining the presence of metals or ores; to follow a vein; to prospect. US
- 14 move in an unhurried fashion wordnet
- 15 To enlarge or shape, as a hole, with a drift. transitive
- 16 wander from a direct course or at random wordnet
- 17 To oversteer a vehicle, causing loss of traction, while maintaining control from entry to exit of a corner. See Drifting (motorsport).
- 18 live unhurriedly, irresponsibly, or freely wordnet
- 19 vary or move from a fixed point or course wordnet
Example
"Many people drift through life without a purpose."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "drift"?
Common synonyms include: movement, trend, aberrancy, aberration, accumulation, adit.
How do you use "drift" in a sentence?
Many people drift through life without a purpose.
How do you pronounce "drift"?
Pronounced /dɹɪft/.
Etymology
From Middle English drift, dryft (“act of driving, drove, shower of rain or snow, impulse”), from Old English *drift (“drift”), from Proto-Germanic *driftiz (“drift”), from Proto-Indo-European *dʰreybʰ- (“to drive, push”). Equivalent to drive + -t; cognate with North Frisian drift (“drift”), Saterland Frisian Drift (“current, flow, stream, drift”), Dutch drift (“drift, passion, urge”), German Drift (“drift”) and Trift (“drove, pasture”), Danish drift (“impulse, instinct”), Swedish drift (“impulse, instinct”), Icelandic drift (“drift, snow-drift”).