DRIFT: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for DRIFT?

Need another word that means the same as “drift”? Find 73 synonyms and 30 related words for “drift” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Drift” are: freewheel, be adrift, blow, float, cast, ramble, range, roam, roll, rove, stray, swan, tramp, vagabond, wander, err, be carried, be carried along, be carried away, be borne, be wafted, digress, depart, diverge, veer, swerve, deviate, get sidetracked, pile up, bank up, heap up, accumulate, gather, form drifts, form heaps, amass, purport, impetus, impulsion, movement, trend, gallery, heading, shift, flow, transfer, transferral, relocation, gravitation, deviation, digression, veering, straying, gist, essence, core, meaning, sense, thesis, substance, significance, signification, pile, heap, bank, mound, mass, accumulation, dune, ridge, crossing place, crossing, causeway

Drift as a Noun

Definitions of "Drift" as a noun

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “drift” as a noun can have the following definitions:

• A horizontal (or nearly horizontal) passageway in a mine.
• A horizontal or inclined passage following a mineral vein or coal seam.
• A ford.
• A force that moves something along.
• The pervading meaning or tenor.
• A controlled skid, used in taking bends at high speeds.
• A general tendency to change (as of opinion.
• A process of linguistic change over a period of time.
• The general intention or meaning of an argument or someone's remarks.
• Glacial and fluvioglacial deposits left by retreating ice sheets.
• An act of herding cattle within a forest to a particular place on an appointed day in order to determine ownership or to levy fines.
• A steady movement or development from one thing towards another that is perceived as unwelcome.
• A large mass of snow, leaves, or other material piled up or carried along by the wind.
• An act of driving cattle or sheep.
• A large mass of material that is heaped up by the wind or by water currents.
• A large spread of flowering plants growing together.
• The deviation of a vessel, aircraft, or projectile from its intended or expected course as the result of currents or winds.
• A continuous slow movement from one place to another.
• A state of inaction or indecision.
• The gradual departure from an intended course due to external influences (as a ship or plane.

Synonyms of "Drift" as a noun (37 Words)

accumulation	Profits that are not paid out as dividends but are added to the capital base of the corporation. The accumulation of wealth.
bank	An elevation in the seabed or a riverbed a mudbank or sandbank. He cashed a check at the bank.
causeway	A raised road or track across low or wet ground. An island reached at low tide by a causeway.
core	An organization founded by James Leonard Farmer in 1942 to work for racial equality. The plan has the interests of children at its core.
crossing	The action of crossing something. The crossing of the Pennines.
crossing place	A voyage across a body of water (usually across the Atlantic Ocean.
deviation	The error of a compass due to local magnetic disturbances. Deviation from a norm.
digression	A message that departs from the main subject. A digression into irrelevant details.
dune	A ridge of sand created by the wind; found in deserts or near lakes and oceans. A sand dune.
essence	An extract or concentrate obtained from a plant or other matter and used for flavouring or scent. Vanilla essence.
flow	The act of flowing or streaming continuous progression. A constant flow of people.
gallery	A group of spectators, especially those at a golf tournament. Shooting gallery.
gist	The real point of an action. It was hard to get the gist of Pedro s talk.
gravitation	The force responsible for gravitation gravity. Irrigation by gravitation rather than by pumps.
heading	A direction or bearing. Chapter headings.
heap	A collection of objects laid on top of each other. Her clothes lay in a heap on the floor.
impetus	A force that moves something along. The ending of the Cold War gave new impetus to idealism.
impulsion	A strong urge to do something. The impulsion of the singers to govern the pace.
mass	An ill-structured collection of similar things (objects or people. We get masses of homework.
meaning	The idea that is intended. What is the meaning of this sentence.
mound	A small hill. They have a southpaw on the mound.
movement	A campaign undertaken by a political social or artistic movement. The movement to end slavery.
pile	A large amount of something. For uniform color and texture tailors cut velvet with the pile running the same direction.
purport	The purpose or intention of something. I do not understand the purport of your remarks.
relocation	The act of changing your residence or place of business. The planned relocation of national headquarters to Warwickshire.
ridge	An elongated region of high barometric pressure. The roof was unusual due to the relative heights of the eaves and the ridge.
sense	Relating to or denoting a coding sequence of nucleotides complementary to an antisense sequence. I can t see the sense in leaving all the work to you.
shift	The group of people who work during a particular shift. A shift in public opinion.
significance	The extent to which a result deviates from that expected to arise simply from random variation or errors in sampling. Do not underestimate the significance of nuclear power.
signification	The representation or conveying of meaning. Many words acquired a signification coloured by legal construction.
straying	An animal that has strayed (especially a domestic animal.
substance	The subject matter of a text, speech, or work of art, especially as contrasted with the form or style in which it is presented. A steel tube coated with a waxy substance.
thesis	A statement or theory that is put forward as a premise to be maintained or proved. A doctoral thesis.
transfer	The act of transfering something from one form to another. Data transfer between different manufacturers drives.
transferral	The action of transferring someone or something. The transferral of ownership in the form of a takeover.
trend	General line of orientation. For more than 20 days in a row most of the top Twitter trends were Olympics related.
veering	The act of turning aside suddenly.

Usage Examples of "Drift" as a noun

• After so much drift, any expression of enthusiasm is welcome.
• The drift towards a more repressive style of policing.
• Four sheep were dug out of the drift.
• The pilot had not noticed any appreciable drift.
• Caught the general drift of the conversation.
• He didn't understand much Greek, but he got her drift.
• They dug a drift parallel with the vein.
• The drift led to another smaller ore chamber.
• A drift of daffodils.
• There was a drift to the towns.
• Maybe I'm too close to the forest to see the trees, if you catch my drift.

Drift as a Verb

Definitions of "Drift" as a verb

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “drift” as a verb can have the following definitions:

• Move in an unhurried fashion.
• Cause to be carried by a current.
• (especially of snow or leaves) be blown into heaps by the wind.
• Walk slowly, aimlessly, or casually.
• Drive slowly and far afield for grazing.
• Be in motion due to some air or water current.
• Move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment.
• Vary or move from a fixed point or course.
• Be subject to fluctuation.
• (of a person or their attention) digress or stray to another subject.
• Wander from a direct course or at random.
• Be piled up in banks or heaps by the force of wind or a current.
• Be carried slowly by a current of air or water.
• Live unhurriedly, irresponsibly, or freely.
• Move passively, aimlessly, or involuntarily into a certain situation or condition.

Synonyms of "Drift" as a verb (36 Words)

accumulate	Gather; build up. Investigators have yet to accumulate enough evidence.
amass	Gather together in a crowd or group. He amassed a fortune estimated at close to a million pounds.
bank up	Do business with a bank or keep an account at a bank.
be adrift	Work in a specific place, with a specific subject, or in a specific function.
be borne	Work in a specific place, with a specific subject, or in a specific function.
be carried	Spend or use time.
be carried along	Be identical or equivalent to.
be carried away	Be identical to; be someone or something.
be wafted	Form or compose.
blow	Of a whale eject air and vapour through the blowhole. The blast had blown the windows out of the van.
cast	Form by pouring e g wax or hot metal into a cast or mold. The moon cast a pale light over the cottages.
depart	Wander from a direct or straight course. The train departs at noon.
deviate	Cause to turn away from a previous or expected course. You must not deviate from the agreed route.
digress	Lose clarity or turn aside especially from the main subject of attention or course of argument in writing, thinking, or speaking. I have digressed a little from my original plan.
diverge	Have no limits as a mathematical series. Suddenly he diverged from his text.
err	Be mistaken or incorrect; make a mistake. He has erred and strayed as many of us have.
float	Be afloat either on or below a liquid surface and not sink to the bottom. Float data.
form drifts	Create (as an entity.
form heaps	Create (as an entity.
freewheel	Coast in a vehicle using the freewheel. She was convinced that she saved a lot of petrol money by turning the engine off and freewheeling down the hill.
gather	Collect or gather. The car gathers speed.
get sidetracked	Suffer from the receipt of.
heap up	Fill to overflow.
pile up	Place or lay as if in a pile.
ramble	Continue talking or writing in a desultory manner. This novel rambles on and jogs.
range	Place or arrange in a row or rows or in a specified manner. Tribes who ranged the windswept lands of the steppe.
roam	Move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment. He let his eyes roam her face.
roll	Flatten or spread with a roller. Pat rolled the trolley to and fro.
rove	(of a person’s eyes) look in changing directions in order to see something thoroughly. The policeman s eyes roved around the pub.
stray	Lose clarity or turn aside especially from the main subject of attention or course of argument in writing, thinking, or speaking. Dog owners are urged not to allow their dogs to stray.
swan	Move about or go somewhere in a casual, irresponsible, or ostentatious way. Airplanes were swanning over the mountains.
swerve	Change or cause to change direction abruptly. A lorry swerved across her path.
vagabond	Wander about as or like a vagabond. He went vagabonding about the world.
veer	(of the wind) change direction clockwise around the points of the compass. The wind veered.
wander	To move or cause to move in a sinuous, spiral, or circular course. Her mind wanders.

Usage Examples of "Drift" as a verb

• Fallen leaves were starting to drift in the gutters.
• Stock prices are drifting higher.
• Excited voices drifted down the hall.
• People began to drift away.
• The cabin cruiser started to drift downstream.
• Drift the boats downstream.
• The laborers drift from one town to the next.
• I've just drifted into things because they were offered to me and they seemed like fun.
• The unknown young man drifted among the invited guests.
• I noticed my audience's attention drifting.
• Snow drifting several feet high.
• The stock market drifted upward.
• My son drifted around for years in California before going to law school.
• He was drifting in and out of consciousness.
• The shipwrecked boat drifted away from the shore.
• Drift the cattle herds westwards.
• Sand drifting like snow.
• The sailboat was adrift on the open sea.
• Don't drift from the set course.
• The boat drifted on the lake.

Associations of "Drift" (30 Words)

adrift	Floating freely; not anchored. The film industry was adrift in a sea of debt.
aimlessly	Without purpose or direction. We wandered aimlessly round Venice.
continental	A member of the Continental Army. Continental waters.
digress	Leave the main subject temporarily in speech or writing. She always digresses when telling a story.
float	Allow a currency to float. The dancer floated across the stage.
floating	Inclined to move or be moved about. A floating platform.
flotsam	People or things that have been rejected or discarded as worthless. The room was cleared of boxes and other flotsam.
freewheel	Coast in a vehicle using the freewheel. I m not the sort of person who would freewheel his way to the end of a contract.
gad	A sharp prod fixed to a rider’s heel and used to urge a horse onward. He had heard that I was gadding about with an airline stewardess.
gallivant	Wander aimlessly in search of pleasure. She quit her job to go gallivanting around the globe.
migration	Movement from one part of something to another. This butterfly s annual migration across North America.
nomadic	Living the life of a nomad; wandering. Nomadic herdsmen.
peripatetic	(of a teacher) working in more than one school or college. Peripatetic country preachers.
plod	A slow, heavy walk. Mules plodded in a circle around a grindstone.
ramble	A walk taken for pleasure in the countryside. Roses climbed rambled hung over walls.
rambling	(of writing or speech) lengthy and confused or inconsequential. A rambling club.
roam	An aimless walk. He let his mind roam as he walked.
rove	(of a person’s eyes) look in changing directions in order to see something thoroughly. The policeman s eyes roved around the pub.
roving	Migratory. He trained as a roving reporter.
southward	Towards the south. The village stretches southwards across the plain.
stray	An animal that has strayed especially a domestic animal. A few stray crumbs.
trudge	A difficult or laborious walk. He began the long trudge back to Stokenchurch Street.
undirected	Lacking direction; without a particular aim, purpose, or target. She was full of ineffectual undirected anger.
vagabond	Wander about as or like a vagabond. He went vagabonding about the world.
vagrant	Relating to or living the life of a vagrant. The vagrant heart of my mother.
wander	An act or instance of wandering. She d go on wanders like that in her nightgown.
wanderer	A person who travels aimlessly. He is a longtime seaman a rootless wanderer.
wandering	Having no fixed course. His life followed a wandering course.