DRIVE

I. verb (drove; ~n; driving) Etymology: Middle English, from Old English drīfan; akin to Old High German trīban to ~ Date: before 12th century transitive verb 1. to frighten or prod (as game or cattle) into moving in a desired direction, to go through (an area) driving game animals, to carry on or through energetically , 3. to impart a forward motion to by physical force , to repulse, remove, or cause to go by force, authority, or influence , to set or keep in motion or operation , to move quickly and forcefully down or along , 4. to direct the motions and course of (a draft animal), to operate the mechanism and controls and direct the course of (as a vehicle) , to convey in a vehicle , to float (logs) down a stream, 5. to exert inescapable or coercive pressure on ; force , to compel to undergo or suffer a change (as in situation or emotional state) , to urge relentlessly to continuous exertion , to press or force into an activity, course, or direction , to project, inject, or impress incisively , to force (a passage) by pressing or digging, 7. to propel (an object of play) swiftly or forcefully , to hit (a golf ball) from the tee especially with a ~r, to cause (a run or runner) to be scored in baseball, to give shape or impulse to , intransitive verb 1. to dash, plunge, or surge ahead rapidly or violently, to progress with strong momentum , to make a quick and forceful move in basketball , 2. to operate a vehicle, to have oneself carried in a vehicle, to ~ a golf ball, see: move drivability also ~ability noun drivable also ~able adjective II. noun Usage: often attributive Date: 1785 an act of driving:, a trip in a carriage or automobile , a collection and driving together of animals, a driving of cattle or sheep overland, a hunt or shoot in which the game is ~n within the hunter's range, the guiding of logs downstream to a mill, f. the act or an instance of driving an object of play (as a golf ball), the flight of a ball , 2. a private road ; ~way , a public road for driving (as in a park), the state of being hurried and under pressure, 4. a strong systematic group effort , a sustained offensive effort , 5. the means for giving motion to a machine or machine part, the means by which the propulsive power of an automobile is applied to the road , the means by which the propulsion of an automotive vehicle is controlled and directed , 6. an offensive, aggressive, or expansionist move, a quick and aggressive move toward the basket in basketball, 7. an urgent, basic, or instinctual need ; a motivating physiological condition of an organism , an impelling culturally acquired concern, interest, or longing , dynamic quality, a device for reading or writing on magnetic or optical media (as tapes or disks)