DRIFT


Meaning of DRIFT in English

n. & v.

--n.

1. a slow movement or variation. b such movement caused by a slow current.

2 the intention, meaning, scope, etc. of what is said etc. (didn't understand his drift).

3 a large mass of snow, sand, etc., accumulated by the wind.

4 esp. derog. a state of inaction.

5 a Naut. a ship's deviation from its course, due to currents. b Aeron. an aircraft's deviation due to side winds. c a projectile's deviation due to its rotation. d a controlled slide of a racing car etc.

6 Mining a horizontal passage following a mineral vein.

7 a large mass of esp. flowering plants (a drift of bluebells).

8 Geol. a material deposited by the wind, a current of water, etc. b (Drift) Pleistocene ice detritus, e.g. boulder clay.

9 the movement of cattle, esp. a gathering on an appointed day to determine ownership etc.

10 a tool for enlarging or shaping a hole in metal.

11 S.Afr. a ford.

--v.

1. intr. be carried by or as if by a current of air or water.

2 intr. move or progress passively, casually, or aimlessly (drifted into teaching).

3 a tr. & intr. pile or be piled by the wind into drifts. b tr. cover (a field, a road, etc.) with drifts.

4 tr. form or enlarge (a hole) with a drift.

5 tr. (of a current) carry.

Phrases and idioms:

drift-ice ice driven or deposited by water. drift-net a large net for herrings etc., allowed to drift with the tide.

Derivatives:

driftage n.

Etymology: ME f. ON & MDu., MHG trift movement of cattle: rel. to DRIVE

Oxford English vocab.      Оксфордский английский словарь.