▪ I. drive, v.
(draɪv)
Pa. tense drove (drəʊv); arch. drave (dreɪv). pa. pple. driven (ˈdrɪv(ə)n).
[A Common Teut. vb., of first ablaut series: OE. dr{iacu}f-an, dráf, pl. drifon, drifen, (corresp. to OS. drîƀan, OFris. drîva, Du. drijven), OHG. trîban (Ger. treiben), ON. drîfa (Sw. drifva, Da. drive), Goth. dreiban; draib, dribum; dribans. Not represented outside Teutonic.
The OE. inflexion is regularly represented by the current forms. In the pa. tense, however, the northern drave long held the field (as in the Bible versions) against the southern drove; the ablaut plural drĭven became obs. in 15th c. A new pa. pple. droven, drove, after the pa. tense, was also long used by some instead of driven.]
A. Inflexional Forms.
1. pres. stem. 1 dr{iacu}f-, 2–5 drif-, dryf-, (4 drijf-, 4–5 driff-, 5 dryff-, dreff-), 3– driv-, (3–6 dryv-, 4–5 dryw-, 6 driev-).
| c 900 tr. Bæda's Hist. i. x. [xiii]. (1890) 48 Us drifað ða ellreordan to sæ. a 1200 Moral Ode 116 Hine þer to scal driue. a 1300 Cursor M. 22642 (Edin.) Drif þaim doun. c 1300 Beket 197 So moche wo he gan dryve. c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xx. 91 He herd ane dryfe bestez. 1483 Cath. Angl. 109/1 To Drywe (A. Dryffe). 1526 Pilgr. Perf. 179 b, Dryue hym away. 1553 Eden Treat. Newe Ind. (Arb.) 13 Whiche nacion the Turke..entended to drieue out of India. |
2. pa. tense. a. sing.
(α) 1 dráf, 2–4 draf, 4–7 (9 arch.) drave, (3 dræf, 4 north. 5–6 Sc. draif, 5 drafe, Sc. draiff, drayff, drawe). These forms also pl. from 13th c. in north, from 15th c. generally:see below c β.
| a 1000 Cædmon's Gen. 2804 Þa se wer..Draf of wicum..his aᵹen bearn. a 1225 Juliana 76 A steorm..draf ham to londe. a 1300 E.E. Psalter xlii[i]. 2 Wharfore awai drave þou me? c 1400 Mandeville (Roxb.) xx. 92 A tempest..drafe him. 1533 Bellenden Livy v. (1822) 417 Camillus draif infinite gudis fra Capena. 1611 Bible Josh. xxiv. 18 The Lord draue out from before vs all the people. 1647 Cowley Mistress, Usurpation ii, But thou, their Cov'etous Neighbour, drav'est out all. 1676 Hobbes Iliad i. 151 Nor ever thence my Kine or Horses drave. 1887 Bowen Virg. æneid i. 29 Now from Latium's shores Troy's exiled army she drave. |
(β) 3–5 drof, 4– drove, (4–5 drofe, droof(e, droff(e). These forms also pl. from 14th c.
| c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 39 Ure drihten drof fele deules..ut af á man. 13.. Coer de L. 5092 Syx thousand..he droff hym before. c 1374 Chaucer Anel. & Arc. 190 She..drofe him forthe. c 1380 Wyclif Wks. (1880) 241 [Crist] droof out symonyentis. 1382 ― Gen. xv. 11 Abram droue hem awey. c 1450 Merlin 78 Our meynee..drof hem ageyn. 1473 J. Warkworth Chron. (Camden) 8 [He] droff oute of Lyncolnshyre Sere Thomas a Burghe. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, iv. iii. 102 He..droue vs to seeke out This Head of safetie. |
(γ) 3 dreof, 4 dref, 4–5 drife.
| c 1205 Lay. 29939 Aðelstan..dreof heom..Ut ouer Weȝen. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 1590 In-to þe erthe his ax dref. c 1400 Sowdone Bab. 407 A Romayne drife a darte him to. |
(δ) 5–7 drived.
| 1388 driueden [see 2 c]. c 1400 Melayne 328 To the Duke a dynt he dryvede. 1685 Baxter Paraphr. N.T., John iv. 46 Outward necessities..drived many to seek to Christ. |
b. 2 sing. 1 drife. c. pl. 1 drifon (dreofon), 2–3 drife(n, 3–5 drive(n, (4–5 dryve(n, dreven, -yn).
| c 900 tr. Bæda's Hist. ii. v. (1890) 112 [Hi] dreofon hine onweᵹ. c 1000 Ags. Ps. lix. 9 [lx. 10] Þu..ðe us swa drife. c 1000 Ags. Gosp. John ix. 35 Hiᵹ hyne drifon ut [c 1160 Hatton drifen]. c 1205 Lay. 1673 Heo..Driuen heom on ȝeinwærd. c 1290 S. Eng. Leg. I. 39/188 Huy driue þane wayn þare as þe Quene was. 13.. Coer de L. 5774 That they ne dreven alle adoun. 1382 Wyclif Job xxiv. 3 They dryuen awei the asse [1388 driueden]. c 1420 Chron. Vilod. 14 Þai drevyn þe Brytones houȝt and drevyn hem in to Walys. c 1450 Merlin 78 We driven the remenaunt in at the gates. |
(β) pl. from 13th c. in north, from 15th c. generally, as sing.: see 2 a, α, β.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 4572 (Cott.) Þai draf [so Gött., Fairf. drave, Trin. droof] þir oþer seuen a-wai. 1480 Caxton Chron. Eng. ccxxxix. 265 They..drofe oute al the prisoners. a 1533 Ld. Berners Huon liv. 183 They..draue away al the bestes. |
3. pa. pple.
(α) 1 drifen, 3– driven, (4 drivin, y-driven, 4–6 dryven, -in, -on, -un, -yn, dreven, -in, -yn, 5 drifun, dryfen, Sc. drywyn, 5–6 drewin, -yn, 6 drieven).
| c 950 Lindisf. Gosp. Luke viii. 29 [He] ᵹedrifen wæs from diowlæ on woesternum. c 1200 Orm. 8247 He wass drifenn ut. a 1300 Cursor M. 21779 (Edin.) Nailis in his hend and fete That driuin ware. c 1330 Arth. & Merl. 6223 Y-driuen he was undir the toun. a 1340 Hampole Psalter x. 7 Þai ere..dryuen in til þe pitt of hell. c 1340 Cursor M. 9454 (Fairf.) Drevyn fro his Erytage. c 1380 Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 187 Was dryvun þus in to helle. c 1400 Destr. Troy 12322 Dryvon fro troy. c 1400 Apol. Loll. 99 All be drifun in to þe seruice of Crist. 1535 Coverdale Ps. xliii[i]. 2 How thou hast dryuen out the Heithen with thy honde. 1553 Eden Treat. Newe Ind. (Arb.) 9 Drieuen into Germanie. 1556 Chron. Gr. Friars (Camden) 28 By tempest ware drevyne to Porchemoth havyne. 1563 Winȝet Wks. (1890) II. 22 The preistis dryuin away and banissit. Ibid. 63 This wil..violentlie is drewin. |
(β) 3 ydryve, 3–6 drive (4–5 dryve, idreve, 5 idrevfe, drif, 6 dryff, dreff).
| 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 97 Mid strengþe ydryue into Yrlonde. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 13856 Ner al slayn, and dryue bakward. c 1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 502 This bargayn is ful dryue. 1387 Trevisa Higden (Rolls) I. 133 Nilus is i-dreue aȝe. c 1400 Song Roland 1024 Or this dredfull day was drif to nyght. c 1485 E.E. Misc. (Warton Club) 43 From dale to doune I am i-dreufe. 1513 Douglas æneis i. Contents 2 How the..Troianis war drive on to Cartage ciete. [1517 R. Torkington Pilgr. (1884) 59 Dryff in to Barbaria. Ibid. 60 We war Dreff bakward.] |
(γ) 5–8 drove, 6–7 droven.
| 14.. Amis & Amil. 2461 (Douce MS.) When thei had..Droue oute both broun and blake. 1557 North Gueuara's Diall Pr. 152 b/2 To haue drouen out the Gothes. 1607 Topsell Four-f. Beasts (1658) 480 They were drove formost. Ibid. 517 They are not to be droven but to be carryed in a Cart. 1648 Gage West. Ind. viii. (1655) 24 We thought it would [have] blown and droven us out of our beds. 1781 Gibbon Decl. & F. II. xxvi. 13 The victor and the vanquished have alternately drove, and been driven. 1799 Nelson 18 Feb. in Nicolas Disp., The French yet may be drove out of the Kingdom of Naples. |
(δ) 5–7 drived.
| 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. ccclxxxvi. 658 They were driued home agayne to their losse. |
B. Signification. I. To force (living beings) to move on or away.
1. a. trans. To force (men or animals) to move on before one, or flee away from one, by blows or intimidation; to urge on or impel with violence. Usually with an adv. or prepositional phrase defining the direction, etc., as away, back, down, in, off, on, out, up; from, to, toward, through a place, etc. In comb. with an adv. often answering in sense to a compound verb from L.: drive back = repel, drive out = expel, drive in or drive on = impel.
| c 1000 Ags. Gosp. Mark xi. 15 He ongann drifan [c 1160 Hatton drifen] of þam temple syllende and bicᵹende. c 1205 Lay. 17613 Drif heom of ærde. a 1300 Cursor M. 3832 (Gött.) I se his dohutir rachell Driuand his bestes to þe well. 1413 Pilgr. Sowle (Caxton 1483) i. ii. 3 Michael drofe me out of heuene. c 1440 Promp. Parv. 132/2 Dryve bestys, mino. 1483 Cath. Angl. 109/2 To Drywe (A. Dryffe) away. 1530 Palsgr. 529/2 I drive a thyng afore me, je chasse deuant moy. Ibid. 530/1 He drave me out a dore..as I had ben a dogge. 1553 Eden Treat. Newe Ind. (Arb.) 38 We droue them to flyghte. 1646 P. Bulkeley Gospel Covt. To Rdr. 5 To be driven up and downe the world, as a vagabond, or as dryed leaves. 1726 Swift It cannot rain but it pours Wks. 1755 III. i. 134 A flock of sheep, that were driving to the shambles. 1855 Macaulay Hist. Eng. III. 333 It was impossible to drive him to bay. 1888 J. Inglis Tent Life in Tigerland 35 The Indian jackal..can fight in an ugly way when driven into a corner. 1894 Baring-Gould Deserts S. France II. 254 The King..drove in the Russian sharpshooters. |
b. Proverb.
| 1532 More Confut. Tindale Wks. 557/1 He must needes go, whom the dyuel dryueth. 1556 J. Heywood Spider & F. lv. A a v b, Forth he must (they say) that the deuil doth driue. 1590 Lodge Euphues Gold. Leg. (1887) 92 He is in haste whom the devil drives. a 1659 Cleveland Coachman 6 The Proverb, needs must go when th' Devil drives. 1886 Mrs. E. Lynn Linton Paston Carew xxxiii, I am sorry for that little fellow..but needs must when the devil drives. |
c. transf. To constrain or oblige to go or flee (by force of circumstances, or by an inward feeling or impulse).
| c 1510 Robin Hood in Arb. Garner VI. 449 What need driveth the to green wood? 1615 J. Stephens Satyr. Ess., Fidler 425 Hope of imployment drives him up to London. 1650 Trapp Comm. Gen. xlvii. 20 Stark hunger drove the wolfe out of the wood, as the proverb is. 1755 S. Walker Serm. x, A Knave, or a Sot! who is drove by the Fear of an After-reckoning to the Church. 1867 Q. Rev. Oct. 30 Thirst for knowledge drove him to Jerusalem. 1879 Cassell's Techn. Educ. IV. 235/2 The persecutions..drove about 5,000 refugees to England. |
2. fig. a. (with abstract object).
| c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 79 Swilch manifeald pine..driuen ut of ure þoght þe fule lustes. a 1300 Cursor M. 26865 His scrift þou agh noght to driue awai. 1484 Caxton Fables of Poge (1889) 4 To dryue awey melancholye. 1576 Fleming Panopl. Epist. 28 [This] drave all my sorrowes into perpetual exile. 1672 Cave Prim. Chr. i. iv. (1673) 88 When he could not drive the thing he might at least banish the name. 1791 Gentl. Mag. 23/1 French bread having driven English from the tables of the great. 1892 Speaker 8 Oct. 427/1 India..has practically been driving China out of the London Market. |
b. To put, bring, cause to fall (upon a person). Obs. or arch.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 19335 (Gött.) Queder ȝe will driue on vs þe blam. 1535 Coverdale 2 Sam. xv. 14 Lest he..dryue some mysfortune vpon vs. 1885 R. Bridges Nero ii. iv, Drive not the fault on him. |
3. a. To cause to flee before one's pursuit; to chase, hunt, pursue, follow; also fig. Obs. or arch.
| c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 209 Þe deuel..henteð us alse hunte driueð deor to grune. 1340 Ayenb. 75 Þe on vlyȝþ, þe oþer hyne dryfþ. 1375 Barbour Bruce vii. 66 He vist full weill that thai vald drif The kyngis trass till thai hym ta. 16.. Chevy Chase ii, To drive the deer with hound and horn, Earl Percy took his way. 1639 Ld. Digby Let. conc. Relig. iv. (1651) 93 To drive up this belief to the Patriarkes. 1810 Scott Lady of L. vi. xxiv, Drive the fleet deer the forest through. |
b. To chase or frighten the game or wild beasts of an extensive area into nets, traps, or a small area where they can be killed or captured. (See drive n. 1 c.)
| 1753 Chambers Cycl. Supp., Driving, amongst sportsmen, a term applied to the taking of young pheasants, and some other birds, in nets of an open structure. Driving of wild fowl, is only practicable in the moulting time..and is to be done by means of a spaniel. 1841 J. Forbes Eleven Y. in Ceylon I. 125 To encircle the herd, and to await his signal to commence driving. Ibid. 139 We could distinctly see the progress of the people employed in driving..At last the elephants broke from the jungle. 1883 19th Cent. Dec. 1096 Battue shooting and grouse and partridge driving. 1890 Baker Wild Beasts I. 162 Any form of shooting excepting driving is quite impossible under these conditions. |
c. absol. To drive a tenant's cattle to the pound as a method of distraining for rent.
| a 1659 Cleveland Poems, &c. 19 (T.) His landlord..hath sent His water-bailiff thus to drive for rent. 1766 Goldsm. Vic. W. xxiv, My steward talks of driving for the rent. 1868 Trench Realities Irish Life vi. 82 The term ‘driving’ was applied to a summary process for recovering rent, which the law in these days conferred upon the landlord, whereby he could drive to the pound the cattle of any tenant who owed any rent whatever, without previous notice. |
d. trans. and intr. To drive (bees) into a new hive (see quots.).
| 1824 T. Wilkinson Tours to Brit. Mountains 144 The landlord..entertained me, as we walked along, with their custom of driving bees.—In Autumn they turn their replenished hives the wrong side up, over which they set an empty one. The bees ascend into their new apartments; they then take them into their solitudes of heath, now in full bloom. 1875 Encycl. Brit. III. 502/1 Artificial swarming, the mode of proceeding for which varies according to the kind of hive in use. Considering, first, straw skeps, the common hive of the country, the operation to be pursued is known as ‘driving’. 1928 C. Williams Story of Hive xiv. 140 The operation of driving is a simple one. A few puffs of smoke are blown into the entrance of the skep, and after a few minutes, during which the bees gorge themselves with honey, it is inverted. An empty skep is then placed above it at an angle of about forty-five degrees, and held in position by means of two driving-irons and a skewer. The sides of the lower hive are then smartly and continuously rapped until all the bees have ascended into the upper one. |
4. With the place or area as verbal object: a. To drive off the animals, etc. from (a district); to scour, devastate, harry. b. Forest Law. To drive together all the cattle in (a forest) for purposes of identification, etc.; see drift n. 1 b. c. Hunting. To search (a wood, district, etc.) for game; also absol.
| a 1400–50 Alexander 1198 All þe pastours and þe playnes prestly to driue, And bring in all þe bestaill, barayn and othire. 1540 Act 32 Hen. VIII, c. 13. §4 All forrestis..shalbe driven at the feast of Sainct Michaell. 1697 Dryden æneid i. 745 We come not with design of wastful Prey, To drive the Country, force the Swains away. 1727 Pope, etc. Art of Sinking 72 They have..driven the country, and carried off at once whole cart-loads of our manufacture. 1790 R. Bage Hermsprong xxiii, If I live, I will drive the country of him. 1890 Baker Wild Beasts & their Ways I. 88 One day we were driving a rocky hill for a tiger. Ibid. 417 We were driving for any kind of animals that the jungle might produce. |
5. spec. To urge onward and direct the course of (an animal drawing a vehicle or plough, or the vehicle itself; also, by later extension, a railway engine or train, etc.).
| [c 1000 Christ 677 Sum mæᵹ ofer sealtne sæ sundwudu drifan.] a 1250 Prov. ælfred 95 in O.E. Misc. 108 And þe cheorl beo in fryþ..And his plouh beo i-dryue. 1382 Wyclif 2 Sam. vi. 3 The sones of Amynadab dryuen the newe wayn. c 1470 Henry Wallace vi. 437 A werk man come fast, Dryfande a mere. 1553 T. Wilson Rhet. (1580) 206 He is a meter man to drive the cart then to serve the court. 1667 Milton P.L. iii. 438 Where Chineses drive With Sails and Wind thir canie Waggons light. c 1676 Lady Chaworth in 12th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm. App. v. 34 Sledges..are counted dangerous things and none can drive the horse that draws them about but the D. of Monmouth. 1895 Law Times Rep. LXXIII. 623/2 The engine-driver drove his train at the rate of..forty miles an hour. |
| fig. 1789 Wolcott (P. Pindar) Ep. to falling Minist. Wks. 1812 II. 116 Who driveth, Jehu-like, the church and state. 1892 Mrs. H. Ward D. Grieve ii. vii, Louie isn't an easy one to drive. |
b. To carry or convey in a vehicle.
| 1662 J. Bargrave Pope Alex. VII (1867) 120 To be droven in a wheelbarrow. 1860 Tyndall Glac. i. xxvii. 218, I was driven by my two guides in an open sledge to Sallenches. Mod. You can have the luggage driven to the station. |
c. absol. To guide a vehicle or the animal that draws it, to act as driver; also, to travel or be conveyed in a carriage under one's own direction or at one's disposal. Also intr. (for pass.), of the vehicle.
One drives in a vehicle of which the course is under one's control, as one's own or a friend's private carriage, or a hired carriage or cab; one rides in a vehicle the course of which one does not control, as a public stage-coach, omnibus, or tram-car, or the cart of a friendly farmer who gives one a ‘lift’ on the way.
| 1592 Shakes. Rom. & Jul. i. iv. 82 Sometime she [Queen Mab] driueth ore a Souldiers necke. 1634 Sir T. Herbert Trav. 136 So that a-top might drive together sixe Chariots. 1709 Berkeley Th. Vision §46, I hear a coach drive along the street. 1717 Prior Alma iii. 140 The man within the coach that sits..Is safer much..than he that drives. 1793 Regal Rambler 83 The lady..ordered her coachman..to drive on. c 1838 Landor Imag. Conv. Wks. 1846 II. 14 If they do not like the price, they drive off. 1877 M. M. Grant Sun-Maid ii, They drove through a shady beech-wood. 1892 Times 19 Jan. 7/5 The Queen drove yesterday afternoon. 1893 Earl Dunmore Pamirs II. 293 A new bridge..was just finished as we drove up. Mod. You can ride by omnibus all the way; but, as time is an object, you had better take a cab and drive to London Bridge. |
† 6. intr. or absol. To ride hard on horseback.
| c 1300 Havelok 2702 He cam driuende up-on a stede. c 1450 Merlin 335 Thei saugh her meyne come full harde dryuinge. 1470–85 Malory Arthur vii. viii, They sawe a knyght come dryuend by them al in grene. |
II. To impel (matter) by physical force.
7. a. trans. To cause (something) to move along by direct application of physical force; to propel, carry along (usually said of the wind, or a current of water).
| a 1067 Charter of Eadweard in Cod. Dipl. IV. 221 Eall ðæt to his strande ᵹedryuen hys. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 175 Storm..arereð shures fele and driueð hem biforen him. a 1300 K. Horn 119 Þe se þat schup so faste drof. c 1400 Sowdone Bab. 76 A drift of wedir us droffe to Rome. 1582 N. Lichefield tr. Castanheda's Conq. E. Ind. lv. 117 b, Their ships were driuen on shore, for all their Ankors. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. i. 125 When the light Stubble, to the Flames resign'd, Is driv'n along, and crackles in the Wind. 1762 Falconer Shipwr. ii. 805 Our helpless bark at last ashore is driven. 1841–71 T. R. Jones Anim. Kingd. (ed. 4) 696 To prevent the blood from being driven back again into the ventricle. 1862 C. M. Yonge C'tess Kate ix, Alice and I used to drive hoops. |
b. To direct the course of (timber floating down a stream). (U.S., Canada, and N.Z.)
| 1848 Thoreau Maine W. (1894) 55 It was easy to see that driving logs must be an exciting as well as arduous and dangerous business. 1873 Gt. Indust. U.S. 822 The difficult and dangerous service of driving the logs down the rivers to the abodes of civilization. 1874 W. M. Baines Narr. E. Crewe viii. 170 A million feet of timber, capable of being ‘driven out’ by placing a flood-dam in a suitable position. 1876 Trans N.Z. Inst. IX. 368 The only other practicable method I can propose for the preservation of the timber is to ‘drive’ the logs down to deep-water at once. |
8. a. To cause to go with force; to throw, cast, send, impel in any direction; e.g. to throw down by force, force asunder, separate or dispel with force. Esp. in Golf; spec. to hit (the ball) a long distance with a driver (driver 3 i); also absol. and intr. Cf. driving-iron, -putter, s.v. driving vbl. n. 3 b.
| a 1000 Boeth. Metr. xxix. 57 (Fox) Hwilum þæt driᵹe drift þone wætan. a 1300 Cursor M. 26047 Samson..þis hus skakand don dos he drijfe. c 1340 Ibid. 21143 (Trin.) Stones at him þei draue. 1398 Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xvi. lxii. (1495) 573 A nother kynde [of stone] forsakyth yren and dryueth it awaye fro hymself. c 1440 York Myst. xvii. 283 Hayll! duke þat dryues dede vndir fete. 1581 G. Pettie Guazzo's Civ. Conv. i. (1586) 17 b, The Northeast winde doth not so drive in sunder the clouds. 1801 Strutt Sports & Past. ii. iii. 81 The game consists in driving the ball into certain holes made in the ground. 1858 A. W. Drayson Sporting S. Africa 191 He generally drove a bullet pretty straight. 1862 Chambers's Encycl. IV. 823/2 Crack-players will drive a ball above 200 yards. 1886 H. G. Hutchinson Hints on Golf 22 Some first-rate players have acquired the habit of ‘driving off the right leg’, as it is termed. 1892 [see put, putt v.2 3]. a 1897 Mod. Sc. dial. Boys driving stones at a bird in a tree. 1959 Chambers's Encycl. VI. 431/1 Crack players will drive a ball above 250 yards. |
b. Cricket. To strike (a ball) with the bat held upright, so as to send it back (more or less) in the direction of the bowler. (Often with the bowler as object.) Also intr.; spec. of a bat: to be suited for driving the ball. c. Baseball and Lawn Tennis. To throw or hit (a ball) very swiftly.
| 1827 Sporting Mag. Nov. 10/1 There would be comparatively no..driving forward. 1836 New Sporting Mag. July 197 It is a mistake to say that such [bats] are too light to ‘drive’ well. 1851 J. Pycroft Cricket Field vii. 154 Do you ever drive a ball back from the leg-stump to long-field On? 1852 ‘N. Felix’ How to play Clarke (1922) 8 Spring out..and drive forward with all your might. 1857 Hughes Tom Brown ii. viii. (1880) 358 Arthur gets the ball again, and actually drives it forward for two. 1871 ‘Thomsonby’ Cricketers in Council 24 A very light bat rarely drives well. 1881 Standard 28 June 3/1 Whiting drove Studd to the off for four. 1882 Daily Tel. 17 May, Shaw, letting out at that bowler's next delivery, drove it to the boundary for a quartette. 1894 Daily News 12 June 3/4 Moorhouse, in attempting to drive Richardson was bowled. 1922 W. Armstrong Art of Cricket i. 7 This player..is in a position to cut or drive square. |
d. To separate (feathers or down) artificially by a current of air which drives away the lightest and collects them by themselves.
| 1604 [see driven 2]. 1696 [see driving vbl. n. 2]. 1755 Johnson, Drive,..18 To purify by motion: so we say to drive feathers. 1817 [see driven 2]. |
9. a. To force, impel, or expel, by a blow or thrust; spec. to force by blows (a stake, a nail, etc.) into the ground or into anything solid, so as to fix it in its place. Also fig. (See also nail n. 7 b and c.)
| a 1225 Ancr. R. 122 [Hy] driuen þuruh his four limes irene neiles. a 1300 Cursor M. 7809 Thoru his licam mi suerd i draif. 1417 Surtees Misc. (1890) 12 Als the stakes are dryfen. 1530 Palsgr. 530/1, I drive out the heed or bottome of any vessell, je effonce. 1586 B. Young Guazzo's Civ. Conv. iv. 191 One nayle is driven out by an other. 1667 Primatt City & C. Build. 93 The ground is not firm to build on, but doth require stakes to be droven. 1698 Fryer E. India & P. 58 Coopers..driving home their Hoops. 1816 Keatinge Trav. (1817) II. 44 [He] drove his heels into the horse's sides. 1890 Baker Wild Beasts & Ways I. 147 The elephant..drove his long tusks between the tiger's shoulders. |
| fig. 1607 Hieron Wks. I. 215 That I may..driue home the naile of this exhortation euen to the head. 1891 Law Times XC. 459/2 The enormity of a particular case only drives home upon the public mind the evils of perjury. |
b. intr. for refl. or pass. (of a nail, ball, etc.).
| 1703 Moxon Mech. Exerc. 123 These Hook-Pins..drive into the Pin-holes through the Mortesses and Tennants. a 1774 Goldsm. Surv. Exp. Philos. (1776) II. 97 At twenty-six yards distance it [the ball] would drive through an oak board half an inch thick. 1793 Smeaton Edystone L. §239 The trenail would drive no further. |
c. transf. (trans.) To drive nails into, so as to fasten; to drive the hoops upon (a cask).
| 1691 T. H[ale] New Invent. 26 Their sheathing when laid on, and droven with Nails. 1757 W. Thompson R.N. Advoc. 18 The Casks not having been drove and filled up. |
d. to drive the centre (center), cross, nail: to make a perfect shot with a gun; to hit the centre of a target; also fig. U.S.
| 1831 Audubon Ornith. Biogr. I. 293 Those who drive the nail have a further trial amongst themselves. 1835 A. B. Longstreet Georgia Scenes 276 He was very confident of..driving the cross with her [sc. a gun]. 1850 L. V. Loomis Jrnl. Birmingham Emigr. Co. (1928) 4 July, A shooting-match, in which..the senter was drove..several times. 1892 ‘Mark Twain’ Amer. Claimant xviii. 170 You've hit it; you've driven the centre; you've plugged the bull's-eye of my dream. |
10. To cause (a cavity, tunnel, etc.) to penetrate any solid formation; spec. in Mining, to excavate horizontally (also absol.): distinguished from sink.
| c 1485 Digby Myst. (1882) iv. 665 A gret wounde is in your..sid, Full deply drevyn with a..sper. 1665 Phil. Trans. I. 79 In the working, or driving as they call it, of Mines or Adits under ground. 1859 Cornwallis New World I. 132 To sink a square or round shaft..and then to drive or excavate horizontally, in search of the glittering ore. 1871 Browning Pr. Hohenst. 1845 Yet would fain build bridge, Lay rail, drive tunnel. |
11. a. intr. (Also to let drive): To aim a blow or a missile, to strike at. b. trans. To aim (a blow); to strike (a person) with a thrust of the arm.
| c 1380 Sir Ferumb. 4538 On þe heued a gerd, As harde as he may dryue. c 1400 Destr. Troy 9430 Palomydon..droffe vnto Deffibus with a dynt felle. 1566 Painter Pal. Pleas. I. 5 He let driue at him with great violence. 1596 Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, ii. iv. 217 Foure Rogues in Buckrom let driue at me. 1713 Swift Frenzy of J. Dennis Wks. 1755 III. i. 145 [He] let drive at us with a vast folio. 1752 Scotland's Glory 14 Driving at him with her stool. 1894 Westm. Gaz. 2 Apr. 7/1 It is not the proper thing to drive a man with the elbow. |
12. a. trans. To spread or beat out thin. (Now only as a techn. term in Painting: see quot. 1859.)
| 14.. Noble Bk. Cookry (Napier) 47 As thyn as ye may dryf them. 1530 Palsgr. 529/2, I drive a thyng abrode, I spred it, or make it larger, jeslargis..Drive this playster abrode, eslargissez cest emplastre. 1601 Holland Pliny II. 553 A master and his prentise wrought in a strife and contention, whether of them could driue his earth thinnest. 1849 J. S. Templeton Guide Oil Paint. i. (ed. 39) 44 By..scumbling is meant the driving opaque tints very thinly over parts that have already been painted. 1859 Gullick & Timbs Paint. 230 When colour is spread thinly and rapidly, it is occasionally said to be ‘driven’. |
b. Printing. to drive out, over: see quots. Also intr. for pass.: see quot. 1823.
| 1727–52 Chambers Cycl. s.v. Printing, When an omission is to be made..If it be but little, the compositor takes it out, and drives out the remaining matter. 1823 Crabb Technol. Dict. s.v., A compositor is said to drive out when he sets wide; the matter in the chace is said to drive out when, by the addition of fresh matter, it is obliged to be moved forwards into the next page. Mod. This word should not have been driven over. |
† 13. to drive a buck of clothes: see buck n.3 3.
| 1588 L. M. tr. Bk. Dyeing 10 Then drive them as you doe a bucke of clothes, and when they are well driven, then shall you take them foorth of the bucking tubbe. 1630 J. Taylor (Water P.) Wit & Mirth Wks. ii. 181/2 A woman was driving a buck of clothes. 1648–1753 [see buck n.3 3]. |
† 14. To dress (cloth). Obs.
| a 1661 B. Holyday Juvenal 169 A greasie cloak..of some gross die, w{supc}{suph} some French weaver drove but ill. |
15. a. To set in motion, set going, supply motive power for (a mill, machinery, etc.).
| 1596 Spenser F.Q. vi. i. 21 A water-streame, whose swelling sourse Shall drive a Mill. 1654 Whitlock Zootomia 428 As good water goeth by the Mill as driveth it. 1799 J. Robertson Agric. Perth 33 The stream that drave the machinery. 1855 Lardner Mus. Sc. & Art v. 37 The machinery which the axle of the fly-wheel drives. 1891 Times 2 Oct. 3/1 A dynamo driven by belting from the engine. |
b. to drive a quill, drive a pen: to write.
| 1793 Regal Rambler 32 Flourish thy fork, and drive thy quill. 1803 M. Cutler in Life, Jrnls. & Corr. (1888) II. 131, I am compelled to write them as fast as I can drive my pen. 1878 Besant & Rice Celia's Arb. vii, One of half a dozen who drove the quill for very slender wage. |
III. To impel forcibly to action, or into some state; to constrain, compel.
16. To incite or impel powerfully or irresistibly; to force, compel (to or into some action, to do something; also, from a course of action, etc.).
| c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 105 He [þe deuel] me drof þerto. a 1300 Cursor M. 26262 For þou hir has to sin driuen. c 1449 Pecock Repr. ii. xvii. 253 Thouȝ ȝe be therto dryue bi peynes. 1553 T. Wilson Rhet. (1580) 142 [He] was driven to laugh at his owne errour. 1667 Milton P.L. iv. 184 A prowling Wolfe, Whom hunger drives to seek new haunt for prey. 1751 Jortin Serm. (1771) I. iv. 71 This driues him to contract unprofitable friendships. 1873 Black Pr. Thule xxii. 363 The pride of the girl had driven her to this decision. |
17. a. To impel, force, or bring forcibly into some state or condition. † to drive to scorn, drive to hething: to put to scorn, make an object of scorn (obs.).
| a 1300 Cursor M. 26455 His lauerd he driues to scorn. Ibid. 26810 Þai crist till hething driue. c 1470 Henry Wallace vi. 153 ‘Me think’, quod he, ‘thow drywys me to scorn’. 1548 Hall Chron., Hen. VII, 37 b, Howbeit the prolongyng of tyme drave Perkyn into a suspicion. 1576 Fleming Panopl. Epist. 388 Discouraged, and driven into dumpes of doubtfulnesse. 1615 J. Stephens Satyr. Ess. 356 She drives the Parson out of Patience with her modestie. 1727 Swift Gulliver iii. iii. 198 An extremity to which the prince is seldom driven. 1879 F. W. Robinson Coward Consc. ii. xxii, It's enough to drive one out of his senses. |
b. With adj. complement: to drive mad, drive distracted, drive crazy, i.e. into the state of madness, etc.
| 1813 Shelley Queen Mab v. 113 Or religion Drives his wife raving mad. 1841 Myers Cath. Th. iv. §40. 388 Questions which drove the subtlest of their doctors almost distracted. 1852 Mrs. Stowe Uncle Tom's C. xvi, A strange hand about me would drive me absolutely frantic. |
c. With under: to suppress.
| 1920 R. Macaulay Potterism v. 180, I hadn't known, until that moment, because I had driven it under, how large a part of my brain believed that Gideon had perhaps done this thing. |
18. To urge on, incite to action; to force to work; to overwork, overtask.
| 1645 Ward Serm. bef. Ho. Com. in Southey Comm.-pl. Bk. Ser. ii. (1849) 6 A field which is driven, and the heart of it worn out, whatever seed is cast in, it returns nothing. 1838 Gray Lett. (1893) 79 In order that he might drive the committee a little, if it should be necessary. 1889 Pall Mall G. 30 Dec. 6/3 A very important matter in the training of a horse is not to drive him. I mean by that, not to over⁓work him, not to push him. |
IV. 19. trans. a. To carry on vigorously, ‘push’, prosecute, conduct, practise, exercise (a custom, trade, etc.); to carry through or out, to effect; to bring to a settlement, conclude (a bargain). to drive a hard bargain: to be severe or uncompromising in making a bargain, settlement, etc.
| c 961 æthelwold Rule St. Benet lvii. (Schröer) 115 Þa ðe þone ceape drifað. c 1200 Trin. Coll. Hom. 193 Talewise men, þe speches driuen, and maken wrong to rihte, and riht to wronge. c 1250 Gen. & Ex. 1681 Long wune is her driuen. 1297 R. Glouc. (1724) 471 The King wolde, that in his court the ple solde be driue. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 1 Thorgh out Chestreschire werre gan thei dryue. c 1386 Chaucer Frankl. T. 502 This bargayn is ful dryue [v. rr. dreue, drewyn]. c 1400 Destr. Troy 5600 What dede haue we don, or dryuen to an end? 1590 Recorde, etc. Gr. Artes Pref. (1640) A iv, Arithmetic, by which..all reckonings and accounts [were] driven. 1631 Sanderson Serm. II. 8 Let two men..pursue the same business, drive the same design. 1655 Fuller Ch. Hist. ix. i. §37 A Bargain can never be driven, where a Buyer can on no terms be procured. 1752 Hume Ess. & Treat. (1777) I. 204 The wife..will still be driving some separate end or project. c 1795 Ld. Auckland Sp. Jrnl. in Corr. (1861) II. 36 The Portuguese princess spoke French sufficient to drive a conversation. 1836 Dickens Let. 17 Aug. (1965) I. 165, I should be very sorry to appear anxious to drive a hard bargain. 1872 Black Adv. Phaeton vi. 81 He stuck to his business and drove a thriving trade. 1878 R. B. Smith Carthage 78 But the senate..managed to drive a hard bargain with the Syracusan king. a 1953 E. O'Neill More Stately Mansions 59, I want your brother to drive the hardest bargain he can. |
b. with on, through.
| 1523 Ld. Berners Froiss. I. ccliii. 375 The mariage..was driuen through and agreed. 1648 Eikon Bas. 30 Some men driving on their private ends. a 1661 Fuller Worthies (1840) III. 490 Trading was driven on, either by the bartery or change of wares..or else by money. 1712 Swift Conduct of Allies Wks. 1778 II. 368 We drove on the war at a prodigious disadvantage. |
V. To go through, endure, pass, prolong.
† 20. trans. To go through (something painful or unpleasant); to endure, suffer, undergo. (App. confused to some extent with dree.) Obs.
| a 1300 Cursor M. 7829 (Gött.) A fouler dede [= death] þan ani may driue. 1414 Brampton Penit. Ps. xxii, Whil thou wilt here thi penaunce dryve. c 1430 Hymns Virg. 120 Bettyr..Than soche payne for to dryve. c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 516 Þarfore sorow grete sho draue. |
† 21. a. To pass, spend (time); to cause (the time) to pass: often with away, forth, over. Obs.
| 13.. Gaw. & Gr. Knt. 1176 [He]..drof þat day wyth Ioy Thus to þe derk nyȝt. 1393 Langl. P. Pl. C. i. 225 As dikers and deluers þat..dryueþ forþ hure daies with ‘deux saue dame emme!’ c 1425 Eng. Conq. Irel. (E.E.T.S.) 88 Anoon he wold aryse & stonde, & so dryue forth al þe meste parte of the nyght. 1484 Caxton Fables of æsop iii. viii, To dryue aweye the tyme. 1500–20 Dunbar Poems xxiv. 17 Quha..dois his dayis in dolour dryfe. 1603 Knolles Hist. Turks 976 To drive out the time, untill his soldiers..were all gathered together. 1697 Dryden Virg. Georg. iii. 583 To drive the tedious Hours away. |
† b. intr. Of time: To pass away, elapse. Obs.
| c 1450 St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 6699 Þe ȝeris of criste war our dryue Sex hundreth' thritty and fyue. c 1470 Henry Wallace viii. 1182 The nycht was myrk, our drayff the dyrkfull chance. 1569 Moray Let. to Cecil 22 Feb. in Tytler Hist. Scot. (1864) III. 317 Let not time drive, but with speed let us understand her majesty's mind. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 155 Two times may as well drive on by each others side..as two everlastingnesses. |
22. trans. To protract, prolong (time or occupation): also with off, out, on. Hence, to put off, defer. Also absol.
| c 1300 Beket 45 He drof hire evere biheste. 1509 Hawes Past. Pleas. xvi. xxix, Dryve of no lenger, but tell me your mynde. 1530 Palsgr. 529/2 I drive of a thynge, I dyffar it, je differre. 1537 Durham Depos. 30 June (Surtees) 53 Dryue yt no longer. 1658–9 Burton's Diary (1828) IV. 140 If you drive it long, they will make it their advantage to break with you. 1705 W. Bosman Guinea Pref. 4, I have purposely affected Brevity, otherwise I could have drove out to a bulky Volume. 1741 tr. De Mouhy's Fort. Country Maid I. 209, I drove on the Time, if I may be allow'd the Expression, in Hopes [etc.]. 1828 Craven Dial., Drive, to procrastinate, ‘thou begins to drive it’. Mod. colloq. You had better not drive it to the last minute. |
VI. To infer, conclude, deduce, derive.
† 23. To obtain as a conclusion from premisses, or as a result from some logical process; to conclude, infer, deduce (also drive out). Obs. (Perh. sometimes associated with derive: cf. next, and derive 7.)
| 1447 O. Bokenham Seyntys (Roxb.) 36 The fyrst yer of the secund Urban..as cronycles dryve. c 1449 Pecock Repr. 8 An Argument if he be ful and foormal, which is clepid a sillogisme is mad of twey proposiciouns dryuyng out of hem & bi strength of hem the thridde proposicioun. Ibid. iv. iv. 443. 1460 J. Capgrave Chron. (1858) 9 For Enos in oure language soundith ‘A resonable man’; for he drove out, be reson, that God was his makere. 1530 Rastell Bk. Purgat. i. xii, Thou haste dryuen that conclusyon upon so many reasonable pryncyples. 1589 Puttenham Eng. Poesie iii. xix. (Arb.) 241 By such confronting of them together, [he] driues out thettrue ods that is betwixt them, and makes it better appeare. 1674 N. Fairfax Bulk & Selv. 141 Which upon search have been found to have been done there, as near as could be driven. |
† 24. trans. By confusion with derive: a. To derive, obtain from a source (= derive 6); b. To convey (a stream) along, or divert it into, some channel (= derive 1, 2). Obs.
| 1549 Compl. Scot. Prol. 16 Oncoutht exquisite termis, dreuyn, or rather..reuyn fra lating. 1569 in W. H. Turner Select. Rec. Oxford 329 It ys..ordered y{supt} the ffysshers do not drawe, dryve, nor turne any of the common waters of this Towne. 1571 Campion Hist. Irel. xiv. (1633) 44 S. Madoc..with his owne hands, driued a running spring to his Monastery. 1585 Jas. I Ess. Poesie (Arb.) 75 Cimmerien night Drevin from a kynd of people in the East, called Cimmerij. |
VII. intr. To drive oneself, or be driven; to move with vehemence or energy.
25. a. To move along or advance quickly; to run or come with violence; to dash, rush, hasten.
| c 900 tr. Bæda's Hist. v. vi. (1890) 400 Ða ic hreowsende wæs, ða ic mid ðy heafde and mid honda com on ðone stan dryfan. c 1205 Lay. 9367 Aruiragus him to dræf. c 1330 R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 25 Alfrid it herd, þidere gan he dryue. c 1398 Chaucer Fortune 46 Abowte the wheel with oother most thou dryve. a 1400–50 Alexander 712 Doune he drafe to þe depest of þe dike bothom. 1513 Douglas æneis x. xiv. 102 Wyth swyft cours he Furth steris his steid, and drayf in the melle. 1697 W. Dampier Voy. I. xvi. 469 They..ran away as fast as they could drive. 1798 W. Clubbe Omnium 126 In swarms again they seek the Hive As fast as ever they can drive. 1817 J. Scott Paris Revisit. (ed. 4) 138 A single British battalion..repeatedly drove at immense columns of the enemy. 1863 Mrs. C. Clarke Shaks. Char. xvii. 434 So he drives in between them, and plays upon the judge with his own guns. |
b. fig. To work hard, ‘go at’ strenuously. colloq.
| 1835 W. Irving in Life & Lett. (1866) III. 82 My cottage is not yet finished, but I shall drive at it as soon as the opening of spring will permit. 1842 Gray Lett. (1893) 296 I have been driving away at the ‘Flora’, of late, very hard. |
c. To play music energetically or with a strong rhythm. colloq. Cf. driving ppl. a. 1 b.
| 1952 B. Ulanov Hist. Jazz in Amer. (1958) 351 Drive, to play with concentrated momentum. 1959 ‘F. Newton’ Jazz Scene 291 A band moves or drives or just goes. |
26. a. To move along, impelled by wind, current, or other natural agency; to float along, drift.
| c 1205 Lay. 28073 Ich isæh þæ vðen i þere sæ driuen. 1393 Gower Conf. I. 183 She dryueth Under a castell with the floode. c 1475 Rauf Coilȝear 27 Ithand wedderis of the eist draif on sa fast. 1481 Caxton Reynard (Arb.) 17 Forth he droof in the streem wel a ij or iij myle. 1526–34 Tindale Acts xxvii. 15 And when the ship was caught..we let her goo and drave with the wether [1611 We let her drive]. 1646 Sir T. Browne Pseud. Ep. ii. ii. 63 The needle..endeavours to conforme unto the Meridian, but being distracted driveth that way where the greater & most powerfuller part of the earth is placed. 1748 Thomson Cast. Indol. i. 528 Oft as he..mark'd the clouds that drove before the wind. 1790 Beatson Nav. & Mil. Mem. I. 157 By the force of the current, all three drove a great way to leeward. 1852 Longfellow Warden Cinque Ports 1 A mist was driving down the British Channel. |
b. To fish with a drift-net.
| 1677 Lond. Gaz. No. 1245/3 This last night a small Fisher Boat, with two Men, was driving in this Bay for Herrings. 1883 Leisure Hour 697/1 Drift-net fishing, or ‘driving’, as it is technically called. |
† c. Metallurgy. (See quot.) Obs.
| 1678 in Phil. Trans. XII. 1050 If the Lead be gone before all the Copper, 'twill rise in small red firy bubbles; then they say, the Metal Drives, and must add more Lead. |
27. fig. a. To proceed in a course; to tend.
| c 1460 Towneley Myst. (Surtees) 25 To dede may we dryfe or lif for the. a 1547 Surrey æneid iv. 492 Ay me, with rage and furies loe I drive. a 1656 Hales Gold. Rem. (1688) 174 Christ in his preaching doth every where drive upon Parables. 1858 Sears Athan. iii. iv. 279 They were driving into blank universalism. |
b. with at (formerly also † to): To proceed towards with definite intention, aim at, have for one's drift or aim; to mean, intend, purpose.
| 1579 Tomson Calvin's Serm. Tim. 136/2 To this end and purpose doth the office of Magistrates driue. 1624 Bp. R. Montagu Gagg To Rdr. 8 He drived directly at the church of England. 1649 Milton Eikon. iii, Their intent drives to the end of stirring up the people. 1670 G. H. Hist. Cardinals ii. iii. 182 He..is driving at the Popedom. a 1715 Burnet Own Time (1766) I. 167 The Presbyterians saw what was driven at. 1762 Foote Lyar ii. Wks. 1799 I. 298 What can he be driving at now! 1865 M. Arnold Ess. Crit. ix. (1875) 387 Mankind at large..will not listen to a word about these propositions, unless it first learns what their author was driving at. 1895 F. Hall Two Trifles 27, I ask you..what you are driving at. |
▪ II. drive, n.
(draɪv)
[f. drive v.]
1. a. The action or an act of driving, impelling, urging onward, etc.: see the verb. spec. of cattle or logs (cf. sense 3) (chiefly U.S. and Canada); also of sheep (N.Z.) full drive: at full speed; with utmost force or impetus.
| 1697 W. Dampier Voy. (1729) I. 254, 2 of our men..rode after the Spaniards full drive. 1728 Vanbr. & Cib. Prov. Husb. iv. i, He's coming hither full drive. 1846 T. B. Thorpe Myst. Backwoods 14 In the excitement of the drive, horses fall, or run headlong over slow-footed cows. 1860 Harper's Mag. XX. 441 The stream must be cleared of obstructions for the drive [of timber] in the Spring. 1873 J. H. Beadle Undevel. West xxxiii. 718 Each company comes down on a ‘drive’, hunting such logs as have lodged along the way. 1883 F. Seebohm Eng. Village Comm. 2 The length of the drive of the plough. 1890 Harper's Mag. July 240/1 They [sc. cowboys] have little to do when not on the drive or in branding time. 1897 I. Scott How I stole 10,000 Sheep vii. 28 There was a fair muster of sheep in the [sale] yards,..so we did not think we should have much trouble in getting a drive. 1902 S. E. White Blazed Trail ii. 7 Customarily a jobber is paid a certain proportion of the agreed price..so much when the ‘drive’ down the waters of the river is finished. 1920 J. M. Hunter Trail Drivers of Texas 53 A cheap rate..had been perfected for..the..cowboys returning home after the drives. 1926 C. Mair in J. W. Garvin Masterworks of Canadian Authors XIV. p. liii, To-day, when it is mainly saw-logs that are cut, the fully improved streams make the drive easy. 1949 P. Newton High Country Days v. 55 There were sufficient [sheep] to make a ‘drive’ out to the back. |
b. An act of driving in a vehicle; a journey or excursion in a carriage driven by oneself or under one's direction.
| 1785 Boswell Tour to Hebrides 18 Aug., We had a dreary drive, in a dusky night, to St. Andrew's. 1823 G. Kennedy Anna Ross (ed. 6) 163 You shall have as many drives as you please in my curricle. 1849 E. E. Napier Excurs. S. Africa I. 178 After this pleasant drive of some four-and-twenty miles. 1888 Burgon Lives 12 Gd. Men II. vi. 73 Within two hours' drive of Oxford. |
c. An urging or impelling forward of animals, so as to drive them into a net, snare, enclosure, or place where they can be killed or captured. Also of a hound in coursing.
| 1833 Sketches & Eccentr. D. Crockett 196 We were soon on foot, moving merrily forward to a small hurricane which had been agreed upon for a drive. 1843 Amer. Pioneer II. 55 There were four drives, or large hunts, organized during the winter. 1859 Tennent Ceylon II. viii. v. 373 Those taken in the second drive. 1876 Coursing Calendar 5 Dovedale got up first, through puss bearing to her side; Thunder then took a good drive and turned. 1880 Daily News 28 Sept. 5/3 There will be a deer drive in the forest of Invermark, and also a grouse drive. 1890 Baker Wild Beasts & their Ways I. 170 After the tiger has killed a buffalo, there is much art required in the conduct of the drive. |
d. A forcible blow or stroke, esp. in various games, as golf, base-ball, lawn-tennis, etc.: in cricket, spec. one which sends the ball back nearly straight in the direction of the bowler. See also quot. 1867, and off-drive (off n. 3), on-drive (on n.). Also (colloq.), a forcible punch or the like.
| 1836 E. Jesse Angler's Rambles 301 He would..shew..the exact length which he could cover in a forward drive. 1839 Sessions Paper X. 16 May 33 Tighe then said, ‘Give her a drive,’ and they went off. 1845 ‘N. Felix’ Felix on Bat i. iii. 16 A tall long-reached man could make a fine forward drive. Ibid. i. iv. 20 The difference between the forward play and the ‘drive’ being only in the additional force you must employ. 1857 Hughes Tom Brown ii. viii. (1880) 356 Jack Raggles..having run one for a forward drive of Johnson's, is about to receive his first ball. 1867 Cornh. Mag. Apr. 493 He has two long drives and a short stroke, while I have three moderate ‘drives’, and get quite as far. 1867 G. H. Selkirk Guide to Cricket Ground iii. 42 The ball is always endeavoured to be hit with this part of the bat [sc. about five inches from the bottom of the blade], which is called the ‘drive’. 1879 Thomson & Tait Nat. Phil I. i. §299 In..forces of brief duration, as in a ‘drive’ in cricket or golf. 1884 Lillywhite's Cricket Ann. 104 Rapid run-getter on a fast wicket with a strong off drive. 1894 Black Highland Cousins I. 36 He made a drive that should have sent the ball over to Lismore. 1898 S. R. Crockett Standard Bearer xxxiii. 294 He gied him aye the ither drive wi' his nieve. |
e. The action of driving or state of being driven, in fig. senses; esp. the state of being hurried or overtasked, extreme pressure of work.
| 1854 W. Arthur Let. in Arnot Life of J. Hamilton (1870) 430 The constant drive of work has..driven a postponable duty out of the way. 1892 Pall Mall G. 10 Nov. 2/1 The success of a manufactory will depend upon the drive and harshness of the supervision. |
f. Onward course, drift, tendency.
| 1895 Ch. Q. Rev. Oct. 152 We..believe that the tendency and drive of things is forward to a reasoned faith. |
g. An organized effort to gain a particular end, esp. to raise money; an intensive campaign or effort. orig. U.S. Also (U.S.), the sale of goods or stocks at a low price.
| 1889 ‘Mark Twain’ Yankee xxii. 245 She was making the honest best drive at it she could. 1890 Ann Arbor Reg. 1 Mar. (Advt.), Ladies, we are going to give you a Benefit and it will be the drive of the season. 1893 Chicago Tribune 2 July 36 A Big Cut in Waists A Big Drive in Corsets. 1921 E. L. Bogart War Costs 210 The four-weeks drive which ushered in the First Loan. 1928 Britain's Industrial Future (Lib. Ind. Inq.) iii. xix. 258 The remarkable American ‘drive’ for the sale of Liberty Bonds. 1930 Nation 4 Oct. 10/1 The opposition of the peasantry to the ‘drive’ for collective agriculture assumed its most dangerous form last winter. 1933 Granta 19 Apr. 358/1 Anyone who has read accounts of the expulsion of the German Jews from the legal and medical professions may have wondered why no similar drive was being made against Jews in university and school appointments. 1941 Times Weekly 30 July 15 The export drive of the automobile industry. |
h. whist-drive: see whist n.3 b; so bridge-drive (bridge n.2). (Cf. drive-whist under sense 9.)
i. Energy, intensity, persistence, initiative, determination to achieve one's purpose.
| 1908 Kipling Lett. to Family iii. 25 ‘Hustle’ does not sit well on the national character... ‘Drive’, a laudable and necessary quality, is quite different. 1909 G. B. Shaw Let. 31 Dec. (1956) 161 Stella has not the drive, the zest for Hypatia. 1924 R. Fry Transformations (1926) 173 Roman art could become expressive when its exponent had some other qualities than Roman efficiency and drive. 1944 J. S. Huxley On Living in Rev. xv. 195 Such men seem to lack the drive and confidence needed for public life. 1955 E. Hillary High Adventure 148 It seemed to us at Camp IV that there was a certain lack of drive. 1965 W. Lamb Posture & Gesture iii. 46 People who show drive and welcome work (or at least get down to doing it) look less fatigued. |
j. Mil. A forceful advance or attack.
| 1911 Encycl. Brit. XXVII. 207/2 Lord Kitchener commenced his first drive. 1918 E. S. Farrow Dict. Mil. Terms 189 The drive of the Allies was costly. |
k. A thrill; exhilaration, esp. resulting from the use of narcotics. U.S. slang.
| 1931 G. Irwin Amer. Tramp & Underworld Slang 67 Drive, a thrill. Formerly that exhilaration derived from narcotics; now, any temporary pleasure or uplift of spirit. 1949 N. Algren Man with Golden Arm i. 58 Sure I like to see it hit. Heroin got the drive awright—but there's not a tingle to a ton. |
2. a. A carriage road; esp. the private road leading to a house. Also, a broad path in a wood.
| 1816 Keatinge Trav. (1817) I. 285 Four acres—for walks..drives, produce, lawns, and plantations! 1825 C. M. Westmacott Eng. Spy I. 238 [She] regularly sports her carriage in the drive. 1862 Mrs. H. Wood Mrs. Hallib. i. xiii. 65 [She] walked round the carriage drive that inclosed the lawn. 1880 R. Jefferies Hodge & his Masters I. viii. 188 There comes..the low, dull, rushing roar of hundreds of hoofs... There is a block in the treacherous ‘drive’. a 1887 ― Field & Hedgerow (1889) 304 The fawns fed away..into one of the broad green open paths or drives. 1894 Mrs. H. Ward Marcella I. 14 The window..overlooked the long white drive. 1894 W. Robinson Wild Garden (ed. 4) ix. 94 (heading) Woodland drives and grass walks. |
b. A course or tract over which game is driven.
3. a. A mass or quantity of timber ‘driven’ down a stream (N. Amer.): see drive v. 7 b.
| 1878 Lumberman's Gaz. 6 Apr., [He] bid in the following drives at the prices mentioned. 1885 Boston (Mass.) Jrnl. 21 Apr. 1/8 A drive of 2,000,000 feet of hard and white pine logs will soon be put into the Merrimack at Boscawen. |
b. (See quots.) Also attrib.
| 1899 J. Bell In Shadow of Bush xiv. 83 The smaller trees..had been ‘scarfed’, or cut partly through in readiness, and skilfully, so that each, when struck, might again in its turn strike and bring down another. The noise of a fall or drive of this kind is like thunder. 1940 B. O'Reilly Green Mountains ii. 76 In the felling of rain forest, much chopping may be saved..by the use of the ‘drive’ system. 1948 R. St. B. Baker Green Glory xviii. 183 This fiendish practice is known as a ‘drive’. The axeman will lay into the trees in such a manner that each will fall on its neighbour, when the pressure from above is set off by a big ‘drive’ tree on the uphill side of all the others. |
4. Mining. A passage ‘driven’ or excavated horizontally; a gallery, tunnel, level; = drift n. 15. Chiefly Austral. and N.Z.
| 1857 in E. A. Cooke et al. Fresh Evidence from Early Goldmining Pubns. (1966) 11 A main drive shall be carried along the course of such lead or gutter. 1864 E. A. Murray E. Norman III. 58 We take this pipeclay out in tunnels called drives. 1880 H. Lapham We Four 18 There was a deserted ‘drive’ up on the spur. 1890 Boldrewood Miner's Right iii. 24 The roof of the gallery, or ‘drive’, as it is invariably called in Australian mining parlance. 1900 M. Boyd Our Stolen Summer x. 93 Up ladders, down ladders, along narrow drives they went. 1912 C. Purnell Modern Arthur 17 Then rushed the miners from their hollow ‘drives’. |
5. Type-founding.
| 1874 Knight Dict. Mech., Drive, a matrix formed by a steel punch, die, or drift. 1888 in Encycl. Brit. XXIII. 699/1 When the letter is perfect, it is driven into a piece of polished copper, called the drive or strike. |
6. a. The means or mechanism by which something is driven; esp. a device by which power is transmitted from one part of a motor vehicle to another; a driving-gear. Freq. with defining word prefixed, as belt drive (belt n.1 6), chain drive (chain n. 19). orig. U.S.
| 1901 Merwin & Webster Calumet ‘K’ xiv. 263 He's putting in three drives entirely different from the way they are in the plans. 1902 A. C. Harmsworth et al. Motors 191 A very smooth and silent drive without the spreading or bursting action of the bevels. 1912 Motor Man. (ed. 14) 74 Three speeds and a reverse are provided, with direct drive on top speed. 1960 Analog Science Fact/Fiction Dec. 45/2 Something crunched heavily under their stern at the exact instant the drive cut out. 1961 Listener 7 Sept. 353/3 It [sc. a telescope]..has a most efficient drive, so that the object under study is held firmly in the field of view. |
b. In a motor vehicle with automatic transmission: the position of the selector lever in which the gears are automatically changed as required.
| 1963 Which? (Car Suppl.) Oct. 116/2 The selector mechanism was a little inclined to snatch at Drive. 1965 Priestley & Wisdom Good Driving v. 40 D for Drive. In this position, which is usual for all driving conditions, the transmission starts in first gear and automatically changes up into second and then top gear. Ibid. 41 With the engine running, Drive is selected, the handbrake released. 1967 Times 31 Mar. 3/7 The coroner said the selector lever must have been in ‘drive’. 1970 D. Mackenzie Kyle Contract (1971) 13 He drove out of Palamos... He shifted into drive and settled back. |
c. Computing. = disc drive s.v. disc n. 8 f.
| 1963 AFIPS Conf. Proc. XXIV. 328/2 The disk storage drive is to read and write information reliably from different drives. 1968 [see disc drive s.v. disc n. 8 f]. 1983 80 Microcomputing Feb. 231/1 Once a drive has been activated it remains rotating for only 30 seconds. 1984 S. Curran Word Processing for Beginners xi. 160 It's all too easy to put the disks into the wrong drives, and copy your back-up onto your current version, instead of vice-versa. |
7. Psychol. a. Any internal mechanism which sets an organism moving or sustains its activity in a certain direction, or causes it to pursue a certain satisfaction; a motive principle; any tendency to persistent behaviour directed at a goal; esp. one of the recognized physiological tensions or conditions of need, such as hunger and thirst. b. Any type of persistent behaviour or disposition that would lead to the attainment of a certain goal.
| [1888 Mind XIII. 165 Trieb (for which there is no good single equivalent in English).] 1918 R. S. Woodworth Dynamic Psychol. ii. 42 The drive is a mechanism already aroused and thus in a position to furnish stimulation to other mechanisms. Ibid. iii. 65 As the individual grows up, his actions are more and more controlled by inner drives. 1931 J. C. Flügel in W. Rose Outl. Mod. Knowl. 367 It is a question rather of simultaneous ‘drives’ or wishes. 1931 C. J. Warden et al. Animal Motivation i. 14 By a drive we mean an aroused reaction tendency which is characterized primarily by the fact that the activity of the organism is directed toward or away from some specific incentive, such as food, water, animal of the opposite sex, etc. 1955 C. Brenner Elem. Textbk. Psychoanalysis ii. 27 A drive, then, is a genetically determined, psychic constituent which, when operative, produces a state of psychic excitation or..tension. This excitation or tension impels the individual to activity, which is also genetically determined in a general way, but which can be considerably altered by individual experience. 1958 W. Stark Sociology of Knowl. 234 It is not a true instinct, but what we have labelled a drive, i.e. not a tendency rooting in the body but rather an attribute of the whole personality. 1962 R. Fine Freud (1963) vi. 93 The individual finds it extremely difficult to recognize his unconscious emotional drives. |
8. Electr. (See quot. 1940.) Cf. driver 3 j.
| 1940 Chambers's Techn. Dict. 267/1 Drive, generally, the alternating voltage applied to the grid of an amplifying thermionic tube. Specially, the master oscillator circuit and its immediately subsequent amplifying stages in a transmitter using independent drive. 1959 K. Henney Radio Engin. Handbk. (ed. 5) xviii. 36 The drive for modulator tubes which are driven into grid current must have very good output-voltage regulation. 1962 Simpson & Richards Junction Transistors xii. 287 The input impedance of a CE power stage capable of supplying 5 watts will vary typically from 80 ohms at very low drive to perhaps 15 ohms at full drive. |
9. attrib., as (sense 2 a) drive-gate; drive-whist U.S., progressive whist.
| 1903 Westm. Gaz. 17 Jan. 1/3 The words were painted in large letters of gold on the drive gate. 1927 F. B. Young Portrait of Clare 127 For answer he pointed to a white drive⁓gate, on the left of the road. |
| 1888 San Juan Prospector (Del Norte, Colo.) 15 May 3/1 Mr. Grover Allen entertained the Young Married Folks at drive whist last Monday evening. |