Synonyms for drift
drɪft

Princeton's WordNet(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate these synonyms:

1. drift, impetus, impulsion(noun)

   a force that moves something along

   Synonyms:
   trend, impetus, movement, heading, purport, impulsion, gallery, impulse

2. drift(noun)

   the gradual departure from an intended course due to external influences (as a ship or plane)

   Synonyms:
   gallery, impulsion, heading, impetus, trend, purport, movement

3. drift(noun)

   a process of linguistic change over a period of time

   Synonyms:
   gallery, impulsion, heading, impetus, trend, purport, movement

4. drift(noun)

   a large mass of material that is heaped up by the wind or by water currents

   Synonyms:
   gallery, impulsion, heading, impetus, trend, purport, movement

5. drift, trend, movement(noun)

   a general tendency to change (as of opinion)

   "not openly liberal but that is the trend of the book"; "a broad movement of the electorate to the right"

   Synonyms:
   impulsion, apparent motion, bm, effort, vogue, front, purport, trend, drive, tendency, gallery, move, movement, campaign, style, apparent movement, motion, cause, social movement, bowel movement, impetus, crusade, motility, course, heading

6. drift, purport(noun)

   the pervading meaning or tenor

   "caught the general drift of the conversation"

   Synonyms:
   trend, impetus, movement, heading, purport, spirit, impulsion, gallery, intent

7. drift, heading, gallery(verb)

   a horizontal (or nearly horizontal) passageway in a mine

   "they dug a drift parallel with the vein"

   Synonyms:
   trend, picture gallery, head, header, art gallery, bearing, impetus, movement, heading, aim, purport, veranda, impulsion, gallery, verandah

8. float, drift, be adrift, blow(verb)

   be in motion due to some air or water current

   "The leaves were blowing in the wind"; "the boat drifted on the lake"; "The sailboat was adrift on the open sea"; "the shipwrecked boat drifted away from the shore"

   Synonyms:
   swash, rove, vagabond, botch, ramble, bungle, muck up, range, mishandle, bumble, botch up, brag, stray, blow, tout, burn out, screw up, suck, gasconade, roll, fumble, flub, fellate, cast, ball up, err, freewheel, bollocks, wander, shoot a line, mess up, shove off, waste, louse up, bollocks up, float, gas, bollix, bluster, vaunt, swan, muff, tramp, blow out, swim, foul up, boast, fluff, bobble, go down on, be adrift, shove along, bollix up, squander, spoil, roam, bodge

9. stray, err, drift(verb)

   wander from a direct course or at random

   "The child strayed from the path and her parents lost sight of her"; "don't drift from the set course"

   Synonyms:
   ramble, rove, range, stray, divagate, err, cast, roam, be adrift, swan, roll, digress, wander, slip, freewheel, blow, tramp, mistake, vagabond, float

10. roll, wander, swan, stray, tramp, roam, cast, ramble, rove, range, drift, vagabond(verb)

    move about aimlessly or without any destination, often in search of food or employment

    "The gypsies roamed the woods"; "roving vagabonds"; "the wandering Jew"; "The cattle roam across the prairie"; "the laborers drift from one town to the next"; "They rolled from town to town"

    Synonyms:
    roam, project, hustle, wrap, verify, spue, redact, affirm, draw, cast off, wave, array, assert, wander, cheat on, mold, float, cast, put, twine, slog, turn over, avow, cheat, throw away, frame, place, roll up, seethe, pasture, crop, vomit up, browse, chuck, mould, roll, throw up, contrive, retch, purge, rate, betray, tramp, disgorge, swear, plod, meander, flap, blow, lay out, pad, shed, wheel, shake off, barf, graze, weave, stray, wind, range, vagabond, swan, rank, grade, couch, thread, pluck, freewheel, rove, be adrift, ramble, regurgitate, cuckold, throw off, straddle, throw, cat, vomit, ramble on, revolve, order, hurtle, spew, honk, roll out, regorge, drop, set out, aver, run, jog, hurl, trudge, err, upchuck, footslog, be sick, undulate, digress, sick, divagate, puke

11. drift(verb)

    vary or move from a fixed point or course

    "stock prices are drifting higher"

    Synonyms:
    be adrift, cast, ramble, stray, tramp, float, roll, roam, range, err, rove, blow, vagabond, wander, swan, freewheel

12. freewheel, drift(verb)

    live unhurriedly, irresponsibly, or freely

    "My son drifted around for years in California before going to law school"

    Synonyms:
    rove, range, stray, ramble, err, cast, roam, be adrift, swan, roll, wander, freewheel, blow, tramp, vagabond, float

13. drift(verb)

    move in an unhurried fashion

    "The unknown young man drifted among the invited guests"

    Synonyms:
    be adrift, cast, ramble, stray, tramp, float, roll, roam, range, err, rove, blow, vagabond, wander, swan, freewheel

14. drift(verb)

    cause to be carried by a current

    "drift the boats downstream"

    Synonyms:
    be adrift, cast, ramble, stray, tramp, float, roll, roam, range, err, rove, blow, vagabond, wander, swan, freewheel

15. drift(verb)

    drive slowly and far afield for grazing

    "drift the cattle herds westwards"

    Synonyms:
    be adrift, cast, ramble, stray, tramp, float, roll, roam, range, err, rove, blow, vagabond, wander, swan, freewheel

16. drift(verb)

    be subject to fluctuation

    "The stock market drifted upward"

    Synonyms:
    be adrift, cast, ramble, stray, tramp, float, roll, roam, range, err, rove, blow, vagabond, wander, swan, freewheel

17. drift(verb)

    be piled up in banks or heaps by the force of wind or a current

    "snow drifting several feet high"; "sand drifting like snow"

    Synonyms:
    be adrift, cast, ramble, stray, tramp, float, roll, roam, range, err, rove, blow, vagabond, wander, swan, freewheel

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and Antonyms(2.00 / 1 vote)Rate these synonyms:

1. drift

   Synonyms:
   tendency, direction, motion, tenor, meaning, purport, object, intention, purpose, scope, aim, result, issue, interence, conclusion, end, course

   Antonyms:
   aimlessness, pointlessness, vagueness, unmeaningness, indefiniteness, confusedness, aberrancy

Dictionary of English Synonymes(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these synonyms:

1. drift(n.)

   Synonyms:
   course, bearing, direction

2. drift(n.)

   Synonyms:
   aim, purpose, intention, intent, proposal, design, scope, tendency, object, mark

3. drift(n.)

   Synonyms:
   (Geol.) diluvium, diluvial formations

4. drift(n.)

   Synonyms:
   (Mining.) passage (under ground, between shafts)

5. drift(v. a.)

   Synonyms:
   drive into heaps

6. drift(v. n.)

   Synonyms:
   float, be wafted

7. drift(v. n.)

   Synonyms:
   accumulate in heaps, be driven into heaps

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated Words(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these synonyms:

1. drift(n)

   Synonyms:
   course, direction, bearing, tendency, aim, intention intent, design, import, meaning, accumulation, heap, bank, pile, diluvium

PPDB, the paraphrase database(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate these paraphrases:

1. List of paraphrases for "drift":

   drifting, adrift, punch, coaster, derive, leeway, deviation, tendency

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How to use drift in a sentence?

1. Gabe Somma:

   With every passing hour, the search expands. When you're searching for something in the ocean, tracking the drift patterns and dealing with weather elements -- things are moving.

2. David Michod:

   We worked out really early on that we were going to drift away from the plays themselves ... Both of us did a huge amount of deep dive research ... and then we made a whole bunch of stuff up too, and the upshot of it is that I sit here now before you today and I honestly can't remember what's real, what's made up and what's from Shakespeare.

3. Brad McMillan:

   I think we are going to have a slow drift up, everybody is at the beach already and I don't expect a lot of action, in the absence of some kind of market-moving information.

4. David Cockfield:

   We're into a resistance zone here, a little sideways moment, maybe even a drift down, is probably justified here.

5. Moh Siong Sim:

   U.S. interest rates are perhaps on the rise because of the fiscal stimulus and the fact that U.S. economy is holding up well, the weak dollar trend has also stalled, and the drift down in dollar/yen has been part of that trend and it has lost a bit of momentum.

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