Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English - drum

~1 n 1 a musical instrument made of skin stretched over a circular frame that you hit with your hand or a stick  (the steady rhythmic beating of the drums) 2 something that looks like a drum, especially part of a machine  (The brake drums are gone on my car.) 3 a large round container for storing liquids such as oil, chemicals etc  (dirty, green oil drums at the back of the yard) 4 the drum of a sound like the sound a drum makes  (the steady drum of the rain on the window) 5 bang/beat the drum for sb/sth to speak eagerly in support of someone or something  (He's always banging the drum for better schools.) ~2 v drummed, drumming 1 to play a drum 2 to make a sound similar to a drum by hitting a surface again and again  (Rain drummed on the windows. | drum your fingers)  (Drumming your fingers can be a sign of anxiety.) drum sth into sb phr v to keep telling someone something until they cannot forget it  (It was drummed into me to never borrow money.) drum sb out of sth phr v to force someone to leave an organization  (He was drummed out of the army.) drum sth up phr v to obtain something by asking a lot of people for help, information etc  (We managed to drum up support for the idea.)