Dictionary entry details
• DRIFT (noun)
Meaning:
A force that moves something along
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural phenomena
Synonyms:
impulsion; impetus; drift
Hypernyms ("drift" is a kind of...):
force ((physics) the influence that produces a change in a physical quantity)
Meaning:
The gradual departure from an intended course due to external influences (as a ship or plane)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural processes
Hypernyms ("drift" is a kind of...):
action; activity; natural action; natural process (a process existing in or produced by nature (rather than by the intent of human beings))
Domain category:
aeroplane; airplane; plane (an aircraft that has a fixed wing and is powered by propellers or jets)
ship (a vessel that carries passengers or freight)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "drift"):
leeway ((of a ship or plane) sideways drift)
Meaning:
A process of linguistic change over a period of time
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural processes
Hypernyms ("drift" is a kind of...):
linguistic process (a process involved in human language)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "drift"):
melioration (the linguistic process in which over a period of time a word grows more positive in connotation or more elevated in meaning)
Meaning:
Something that is heaped up by the wind or by water currents
Classified under:
Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)
Hypernyms ("drift" is a kind of...):
matter; substance (that which has mass and occupies space)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "drift"):
drumlin (a mound of glacial drift)
snowdrift (a mass of snow heaped up by the wind)
Meaning:
A general tendency to change (as of opinion)
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Synonyms:
trend; drift; movement
Context examples:
not openly liberal but that is the trend of the book / a broad movement of the electorate to the right
Hypernyms ("drift" is a kind of...):
disposition; inclination; tendency (an attitude of mind especially one that favors one alternative over others)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "drift"):
evolutionary trend (a general direction of evolutionary change)
gravitation (a figurative movement toward some attraction)
Meaning:
The pervading meaning or tenor
Classified under:
Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents
Synonyms:
purport; drift
Context example:
caught the general drift of the conversation
Hypernyms ("drift" is a kind of...):
strain; tenor (the general meaning or substance of an utterance)
Meaning:
A horizontal (or nearly horizontal) passageway in a mine
Classified under:
Nouns denoting man-made objects
Synonyms:
heading; drift; gallery
Context example:
they dug a drift parallel with the vein
Hypernyms ("drift" is a kind of...):
passageway (a passage between rooms or between buildings)
Domain category:
excavation; mining (the act of extracting ores or coal etc from the earth)
• DRIFT (verb)
Meaning:
Be in motion due to some air or water current
Classified under:
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming
Synonyms:
be adrift; float; drift; blow
Context examples:
The leaves were blowing in the wind / the boat drifted on the lake / The sailboat was adrift on the open sea / the shipwrecked boat drifted away from the shore
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
go; locomote; move; travel (change location; move, travel, or proceed)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "drift"):
waft (be driven or carried along, as by the air)
tide (be carried with the tide)
stream (to extend, wave or float outward, as if in the wind)
Sentence frames:
Something ----s
Something is ----ing PP
Meaning:
Wander from a direct course or at random
Classified under:
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming
Synonyms:
drift; err; stray
Context examples:
The child strayed from the path and her parents lost sight of her / don't drift from the set course
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
go; locomote; move; travel (change location; move, travel, or proceed)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP
Meaning:
Move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment
Classified under:
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming
Synonyms:
wander; vagabond; rove; roam; stray; range; ramble; swan; drift; tramp; cast; roll
Context examples:
The gypsies roamed the woods / roving vagabonds / the wandering Jew / The cattle roam across the prairie / the laborers drift from one town to the next / They rolled from town to town
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
go; locomote; move; travel (change location; move, travel, or proceed)
Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "drift"):
maunder (wander aimlessly)
gad; gallivant; jazz around (wander aimlessly in search of pleasure)
Sentence frames:
Somebody ----s
Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s something
Somebody ----s PP
Meaning:
Vary or move from a fixed point or course
Classified under:
Verbs of being, having, spatial relations
Context example:
stock prices are drifting higher
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
vary (be subject to change in accordance with a variable)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s
Meaning:
Live unhurriedly, irresponsibly, or freely
Classified under:
Verbs of being, having, spatial relations
Synonyms:
freewheel; drift
Context example:
My son drifted around for years in California before going to law school
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
exist; live; subsist; survive (support oneself)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s
Meaning:
Move in an unhurried fashion
Classified under:
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming
Context example:
The unknown young man drifted among the invited guests
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
circulate (move around freely)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s
Meaning:
Cause to be carried by a current
Classified under:
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming
Context example:
drift the boats downstream
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
float (set afloat)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
Meaning:
Drive slowly and far afield for grazing
Classified under:
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging
Context example:
drift the cattle herds westwards
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
crop; graze; pasture (let feed in a field or pasture or meadow)
Sentence frame:
Somebody ----s something
Meaning:
Be subject to fluctuation
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Context example:
The stock market drifted upward
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
change (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s
Meaning:
Be piled up in banks or heaps by the force of wind or a current
Classified under:
Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.
Context examples:
snow drifting several feet high / sand drifting like snow
Hypernyms (to "drift" is one way to...):
accumulate; amass; conglomerate; cumulate; gather; pile up (collect or gather)
Sentence frame:
Something ----s
