draɪv v. & n. --v. (past drove;
past part. driven) 1 tr. (usu. foll. by
away,
back,
in,
out,
to, etc.)
urge in
some direction,
esp. forcibly (drove back
the wolves). 2 tr. a (usu. foll. by to + infin., or to +
verbal noun)
compel or
constrain forcibly (was
driven to
complain; drove
her to stealing). b (often foll. by to) force
into a specified
state (drove
him mad; driven to despair). c (often refl.) urge to
overwork (drives
himself too hard). 3 a tr. (also absol.)
operate and direct the
course of (a
vehicle, a
locomotive, etc.) (drove a sports
car; drives well). b tr. & intr.
convey or be conveyed in a vehicle (drove
them to the
station; drove to the station in a bus) (cf. RIDE). c tr. (also absol.) be licensed or
competent to drive (a vehicle) (does he drive?). d tr. (also absol.) urge and direct the course of (an
animal drawing a vehicle or plough). 4 tr. (of wind,
water, etc.)
carry along,
propel,
send, or
cause to go in some direction (pure as the driven snow). 5 tr. a (often foll. by into) force (a stake,
nail, etc.) into
place by blows (drove the nail home). b Mining bore (a
tunnel,
horizontal cavity, etc.). 6 tr.
effect or
conclude forcibly (drove a
hard bargain; drove
his point home). 7 tr. (of
steam or
other power) set or
keep (machinery)
going. 8 intr. (usu. foll. by at)
work hard;
dash, rush, or
hasten. 9 tr. Cricket &
Tennis hit (the ball) hard
from a freely
swung bat or racket. 10 tr. (often absol.)
Golf strike (a ball)
with a
driver from the tee. 11 tr. chase or
frighten (game,
wild beasts, an
enemy in
warfare, etc.) from a
large area to a smaller, to
kill or
capture;
corner. 12 tr.
Brit. hold a
drift in (a
forest etc.) (see DRIFT n. 9). --n. 1 an
act of driving in a
motor vehicle; a
journey or
excursion in
such a vehicle (went
for a
pleasant drive;
lives an hour's drive from us). 2 a the
capacity for
achievement; motivation and
energy (lacks the drive needed to succeed). b Psychol. an
inner urge to
attain a
goal or
satisfy a
need (unconscious
emotional drives). 3 a a usu. landscaped
street or road. b a usu.
private road
through a
garden or
park to a
house. 4 Cricket, Golf, & Tennis a driving
stroke of the bat etc. 5 an organized
effort to
achieve a usu.
charitable purpose (a famine-relief drive). 6 a the
transmission of
power to
machinery, the wheels of a motor vehicle, etc. (belt drive; front-wheel drive). b the
position of a steering-wheel in a motor vehicle (left-hand drive). c Computing =
disk drive (see DISC). 7 Brit. an organized
competition, for
many players, of whist,
bingo, etc. 8 an act of driving game or an enemy. 9
Austral. & NZ a line of
partly cut trees on a
hillside felled
when the top
one topples on the others. ødrive at
seek,
intend, or mean (what is he driving at?). drive-in attrib.adj. (of a bank,
cinema, etc.)
able to be used
while sitting in one's car. --n. such a bank, cinema, etc. drive-on (of a ship) on to
which motor vehicles
may be driven. drive out
take the place
of;
oust;
exorcize,
cast out (evil spirits etc.). driving-licence a
licence permitting a
person to drive a motor vehicle. driving
rain an
excessive windblown
downpour. driving-range Golf an area for practising drives. driving test an
official test of a motorist's
competence which must be passed to
obtain a driving licence. driving-wheel 1 the large
wheel of a locomotive. 2 a wheel communicating
motive power in machinery. let drive
aim a blow or
missile. øødrivable adj. [OE drifan f. Gmc]