/ drɑːft; NAmE dræft/ noun , adjective , verb
■ noun
1.
[ C ] a rough written version of sth that is not yet in its final form :
I've made a rough draft of the letter.
This is only the first draft of my speech.
the final draft (= the final version)
The legislation is still in draft form .
a draft constitution / treaty / agreement
2.
[ C ] ( finance ) a written order to a bank to pay money to sb :
Payment must be made by bank draft drawn on a UK bank.
3.
the draft [ sing. ] ( especially US ) = conscription
4.
[ sing. ] ( NAmE ) a system in which professional teams in some sports choose players each year from among college students
5.
[ C ] ( NAmE ) = draught :
Can you shut the door? There's a draft in here.
■ adjective
( NAmE ) = draught
■ verb (also draught especially in BrE ) [ vn ]
1.
to write the first rough version of sth such as a letter, speech or book :
to draft a constitution / contract / bill
I'll draft a letter for you.
2.
[+ adv. / prep. ] to choose people and send them somewhere for a special task :
Extra police are being drafted in to control the crowds.
3.
[ usually passive ] ( NAmE ) = conscript :
They were drafted into the army.
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WORD ORIGIN
mid 16th cent.: phonetic spelling of draught .