Drive — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

verb noun /ˈdrīv/

Meaning & Definition of Drive

Drive (verb)

  1. to frighten or prod (game, cattle, etc.) into moving in a desired direction
  2. to go through (an area) driving game animals
  3. to carry on or through energetically

Drive (noun)

  1. an act of driving:
  2. a trip in a carriage or automobile
  3. an instance of collecting and moving animals (such as game or cattle) together in a desired direction; also, the animals gathered and driven

Drive (verb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to urge, push, or force onward

    "cowboys drove the herd of cattle from San Antonio to San Francisco"

    similar: herd, punch, run
    related: shepherd, wrangle, egg, exhort, flog, goad, hound, press, prick, prod, prompt, scourge, spur, whip

  2. to travel by a motorized vehicle

    "I'm going to drive across the country—want to come?"

    similar: automobile, motor, tool
    related: roll, wheel, joyride, chauffeur, hack, taxi, ride, drag, race

  3. to apply force to (someone or something) so that it moves in front of one

    "drove the plunger into the opening"

    similar: propel, push, shove, thrust
    related: impel, move, bear (down), compress, depress, jam, pressure, squash, squeeze, weigh (upon), bulldoze, compel, force, lean (on or against), muscle, ram

  4. to cause (a person) to give in to pressure

    "the corrupt governor was driven out of office"

    similar: blackjack, coerce, compel, constrain, dragoon, force, impel, impress, make, muscle, obligate, oblige, press, pressure, sandbag, twist one's arm
    related: browbeat, bulldoze, bully, cow, hector, intimidate, blackmail, high-pressure, menace, shame, terrorize, threaten, drag, badger, harass, hound
    near: allow, let, permit, argue, convince, induce, move, persuade, prevail (on or upon), satisfy, talk (into), win (over)

  5. to cause to function

    "machinery driven by waterpower"

    similar: activate, actuate, crank (up), move, run, set off, spark, start, touch off, trigger, turn on
    related: kick over, turn over, charge, electrify, energize, fire, fuel, generate, power, push, discharge, launch, release, switch, trip, reactivate, recharge, arouse, excite, jump-start, kick-start, stimulate, vitalize, ignite, incite, instigate, provoke, quicken, stir up, accelerate, catalyze, speed (up), step up
    opposite: cut, cut out, deactivate, kill, shut off, turn off
    near: arrest, brake, check, cut off, draw up, halt, jam, stall, stick, stop, decelerate, repress, slow, stunt, suppress

  6. to set or keep in motion

    "this motor drives the gears, which then turn the shaft"

    similar: actuate, impel, move, propel, work
    related: activate, motivate, provoke, abet, ferment, foment, incite, raise, stir (up), whip (up), set off, trigger, trip, arouse, excite, fire (up), galvanize, inflame, inspire, instigate, rouse, stimulate
    near: bridle, check, constrain, contain, control, curb, inhibit, regulate, rein (in), restrain

  7. to proceed or move quickly

    "the runner drove past the finish line and then came to a dead stop"

    similar: barrel, belt, blast, blaze, blow, bolt, bomb (slang), bowl, breeze, bundle, bustle, buzz, cannonball, careen, career, chase, course, crack (on), dash, fly, hare, hasten, hie, highball, hotfoot (it), hump, hurl, hurry, hurtle, hustle, jet, jump, motor, nip, pelt, race, ram, rip, rocket, run, rush, rustle, scoot, scurry, scuttle, shoot, speed, step, tear, travel, trot, whirl, whisk, zip, zoom, beat it, get a move on, make tracks, shake a leg, step on it
    related: beetle, dart, flit, scamper, scud, scuffle, stampede, streak, whiz, gallop, jog, sprint, accelerate, quicken, step out, catch up, fast-forward, outpace, outrun, outstrip, overtake, arrow, beeline
    opposite: crawl, creep, poke
    near: dally, dawdle, dillydally, drag, hang (around or out), lag, linger, loiter, poke, tarry, amble, lumber, plod, saunter, shuffle, stroll, decelerate, slow (down or up)

Drive (noun) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. a passage cleared for public vehicular travel

    "raced our motorcycles along the drive"

    similar: arterial, artery, avenue, boulevard, carriageway (British), drag, expressway, freeway, high road, highway, pass, pike, road, roadway, route, row, street, thoroughfare, thruway, trace, turnpike, way
    related: causeway, autobahn, autoroute, autostrada, dual carriageway (chiefly British), interstate, motorway (chiefly British), superhighway, beltway, bypass, parkway, ring road (chiefly British), corniche, switchback, through street, high street (British), Main Street, backstreet, branch, bystreet, byway, crossroad, secondary road, shunpike, side road, side street, alley, alleyway, circle, lane, laneway (British), mews (chiefly British), place, close (chiefly British), cul-de-sac, dead end, corridor, track, trail

  2. a series of activities undertaken to achieve a goal

    "a fund-raising drive for the school's marching band"

    similar: bandwagon, blitz, campaign, cause, crusade, juggernaut, movement, push
    related: assault, attack, maneuver, march, offensive, action, bid, enterprise, initiative, mission, project, undertaking

  3. a strong wish for something

    "a drive to succeed in the television news business"

    similar: appetency, appetite, craving, desire, hankering, hunger, itch, jones (slang), letch, longing, lust, passion, pining, thirst, thirstiness, urge, yearning, yen
    related: compulsion, impulse, impulsion, will, zeal, liking, love, taste, weakness, eagerness, impatience, want, wish, necessity, need, requirement, obsession, acquisitiveness, avarice, avariciousness, avidity, covetousness, cupidity, greed, greediness, rapaciousness, rapacity, cacoëthes, mania
    near: abhorrence, abomination, allergy, averseness, aversion, disfavor, disgust, disinclination, dislike, disliking, distaste, hatred, loathing, nausea, repugnance, repulsion, revulsion, apathy, indifference, insouciance, nonchalance, unconcern

  4. active strength of body or mind

    "senior citizens who exercise regularly are more likely to have the drive to keep up with their grandchildren"

    similar: beans, bounce, brio, dash, dynamism, energy, esprit, gas, get-up-and-go, ginger, go, gusto, hardihood, juice, life, moxie, oomph, pep, punch, sap, snap, starch, verve, vigor, vim, vinegar, vitality, zing, zip
    related: animal spirits, animation, briskness, jauntiness, liveliness, snappiness, spirit, spiritedness, sprightliness, spunk, spunkiness, vibrance, vibrancy, vivaciousness, vivacity, ardor, élan, fervor, fire, passion, zeal, main, metal, mettle, might, muscle, potency, power, puissance, stamina, strength, brawniness, fitness, hardiness, huskiness, sturdiness, virility, health, healthiness, soundness, verdure, wellness
    opposite: lethargy, listlessness, sluggishness, torpidity
    near: indolence, laziness, debilitation, debility, delicacy, disablement, enfeeblement, faintness, feebleness, frailness, frailty, impotence, impotency, infirmity, powerlessness, puniness, slightness, softness, tenderness, weakness, enervation, exhaustion, inanition, prostration

  5. readiness to engage in daring or difficult activity

    "a great opportunity for a sales representative who is full of drive"

    similar: action, aggressiveness, ambition, enterprise, go, hustle, initiative
    related: grit, gumption, pluck, snap, spirit, spunk, starch, ambitiousness, killer instinct, overambitiousness, assertiveness, self-reliance, energy, hardihood, pep, vigor, vitality
    near: inactivity, inertia, passivity, diffidence, faintheartedness, timidity, hesitation, reluctance, indolence, laziness, lethargy

Related Entry: Drive-by (adjective)

Drive-by is a different word from Drive. The synonyms below are for drive-by, not for drive.

  1. acting or done with excessive or careless speed

    "the administrator's schedule left her with no time to make more than a drive-by assessment of the situation"

    similar: cursory, flying, gadarene, hasty, headlong, helter-skelter, hurried, overhasty, pell-mell, precipitate, precipitous, rash, rushed
    related: breakneck, breathtaking, headstrong, heady, hotheaded, impatient, impetuous, impulsive, madcap, reckless, unadvised, quick, rapid, speedy, swift, horseback, impromptu, makeshift, offhand, offhanded, off-the-cuff, rush, slapdash, snap, spontaneous, spur-of-the-moment, abrupt, sudden
    opposite: deliberate, unhurried, unrushed
    near: calculated, calculating, measured, circumspect, foresighted, forethoughtful, drawn-out, extended, long-term, prolonged, faltering, hesitant, hesitating, tentative, dallying, dawdling, laggard, leisurely, poky, shilly-shallying, slow

Related Entry: Drive (away or off) (verb)

Drive (away or off) is a different word from Drive. The synonyms below are for drive (away or off), not for drive.

  1. as in turn away, repulse

    similar: repulse, turn away, alert, caution, forewarn, ward (off), warn
    opposite: allure, bait, beguile, betray, decoy, entice, lead on, lure, seduce, solicit, tempt, draw in, inveigle, persuade, rope (in), snow, catch, enmesh, ensnare, entrap, mesh, snare, tangle, trap

Related Entry: Drive (into) (verb)

Drive (into) is a different word from Drive. The synonyms below are for drive (into), not for drive.

  1. as in beat (into)

    similar: beat (into), imbue, infuse, instill, establish, place, put, settle, stick, bed, embed, enroot, entrench, fix, impact, implant, ingrain, lodge, root
    opposite: dislodge, root (out), uproot, eliminate, eradicate, eject, expel, detach, disconnect, disengage, remove

Related Entry: Drive-in (noun)

Drive-in is a different word from Drive. The synonyms below are for drive-in, not for drive.

  1. as in theater, cinema

    similar: cinema, playhouse, theater, megaplex, multiplex, plex, art house, art theater, cinematheque, fleapit (British), grind house, nickelodeon

Related Entry: Drive-ins (noun)

Drive-ins is a different word from Drive. The synonyms below are for drive-ins, not for drive.

  1. as in theaters, cinemas

    similar: cinemas, playhouses, theaters, megaplexes, multiplexes, plexes, art houses, art theaters, cinematheques, fleapits (British), grind houses, nickelodeons

Related Entry: Test-drive (noun)

Test-drive is a different word from Drive. The synonyms below are for test-drive, not for drive.

  1. as in checkout, trial run

    similar: checkout, trial run, observation, surveillance, watch, recheck, reinspection, resurvey, once-over, perusal, inquisition, interrogation, exploration, investigation, probe, research, study, analysis, assay, close-up, deconstruction, dissection, audit, check, checkup, examination, going-over, inspection, look-see, review, scan, scrutiny, survey, view

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Drive

The most common words with a similar meaning to Drive:

Slang: bomb, jones
British: carriageway
herd, punch, run, automobile, motor, tool, propel, push, shove, thrust, blackjack, coerce, compel, constrain, dragoon, force, impel, impress, make, muscle, obligate, oblige, press, pressure, sandbag, activate, actuate, crank (up), move, set off, spark, start, touch off, trigger, turn on, work, barrel, belt, blast, blaze

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Drive

Words with the opposite meaning of Drive:

cut, cut out, deactivate, kill, shut off, turn off, crawl, creep, poke, lethargy, listlessness, sluggishness, torpidity

Related Words for Drive

shepherd, wrangle, egg, exhort, flog, goad, hound, prick, prod, prompt, scourge, spur, whip, roll, wheel, joyride, chauffeur, hack, taxi, ride, bear (down), compress, depress, jam, squash, squeeze, weigh (upon), bulldoze, lean (on or against), browbeat

Near Antonyms of Drive

allow, let, permit, argue, convince, induce, move, persuade, prevail (on or upon), satisfy, talk (into), win (over), arrest, brake, check, cut off, draw up, halt, jam, stall, stick, stop, decelerate, repress, slow, stunt, suppress, bridle, constrain, contain

Word Forms of Drive

Inflections: drove, driven, driving, drives

Origin & Etymology of Drive

Middle English, from Old English drīfan; akin to Old High German trīban to drive

First known use: before 12th centuryt

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Drive

Words & Phrases Containing Drive

drive at, drive-by, drive-in, drive (someone) bananas, drive (someone) nuts, drive (someone) up the wall

Frequently Asked Questions about Drive

What does "Drive" mean?

"Drive" means to frighten or prod (game, cattle, etc.) into moving in a desired direction. As an a verb and a noun, it is defined as: to frighten or prod (game, cattle, etc.) into moving in a desired direction. It has 12 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Drive"?

Other words for "Drive" include herd, punch, run, automobile, motor, tool, propel and push. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Drive" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Drive"?

There are 402 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Drive". Common alternatives include herd, punch, run, automobile, motor, tool, propel, push, shove and thrust.

What is the opposite of "Drive"?

Antonyms of "Drive" include cut, cut out, deactivate, kill, shut off, turn off, crawl and creep. Near antonyms include allow, let, permit and argue.

How do you use "Drive" in a sentence?

Examples of "Drive" in a sentence: "cowboys drove the herd of cattle from San Antonio to San Francisco"; "I'm going to drive across the country—want to come?"; "drove the plunger into the opening".

Is "Drive" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Drive" can be used as a verb and a noun, depending on the context.

Is "Drive" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A1-level word, "Drive" is typical of Cambridge A1 Movers (Young Learners), TOEIC Listening & Reading 120+.

How do you pronounce "Drive"?

"Drive" is pronounced /ˈdrīv/.