|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries: |
Research categories | Follow us on Twitter |
Research categories
View all topics in the newsView all reference sources at Encyclopedia.com |
|||
drive
drive / drīv/ • v. (past drove / drōv/ ; past part. driv·en / ˈdrivən/ ) 1. [intr.] operate and control the direction and speed of a motor vehicle: he got into his car and drove off | they drove back into town. ∎ [tr.] own or use (a specified type of motor vehicle): Sue drives an old Chevy. ∎ [intr.] be licensed or competent to drive a motor vehicle: I take it you can drive? ∎ [tr.] convey (someone) in a vehicle, esp. a private car: Shelley drove him to the supermarket. 2. [tr.] propel or carry along by force in a specified direction: the wind will drive you onshore. ∎ [intr.] (of wind, water, or snow) move or fall with great force: the snow drove against him. ∎ [tr.] (of a source of power) provide the energy to set and keep (an engine or piece of machinery) in motion: turbines driven by steam. ∎ Electr. (of a device) power or operate (another device): the interface can be used to drive a printer. ∎ [tr.] force (a stake or nail) into place by hitting or pushing it: nails are driven through the boards. ∎ [tr.] bore (a tunnel). ∎ (in ball games) hit or kick (the ball) hard with a free swing of the bat, racket, or foot. ∎ [tr.] Golf strike (a ball) from the tee, typically with a driver. 3. [tr.] urge or force (animals or people) to move in a specified direction: they drove a flock of sheep through the center of the city. ∎ [tr.] urge forward and direct the course of (an animal drawing a vehicle or plow). ∎ [tr.] chase or frighten (wild animals) into nets, traps, or into a small area where they can be killed or captured: they were up on the hill before dawn, ready to drive the deer. ∎ compel to leave: troops drove out the demonstrators | he wanted to drive me away. 4. [tr.] (usu. be driven) (of a fact or feeling) compel (someone) to act in a particular way, esp. one that is considered undesirable or inappropriate: he was driven by ambition | [tr.] some people are driven to murder their tormentors | [as adj.] (driven) my husband is a driven man. ∎ [tr.] bring (someone) forcibly into a specified negative state: the thought drove him to despair | [tr.] my laziness drives my wife crazy. ∎ [tr.] force (someone) to work to an excessive extent: you're driving yourself too hard. • n. 1. a trip or journey in a car: they went for a drive in the country. ∎ [in names] a street or road: Hammond Drive. ∎ short for driveway. 2. Psychol. an innate, biologically determined urge to attain a goal or satisfy a need: her emotional and sexual drives. ∎ the determination and ambition of a person to achieve something: her drive has sustained her through some shattering personal experiences. 3. an organized effort by a number of people to achieve a particular purpose, often to raise money: we're planning a massive membership drive. ∎ Football a series of offensive plays that advance the ball for the purpose of a score: an 80-yard scoring drive. 4. the transmission of power to machinery or to the wheels of a motor vehicle. ∎ (in a car with automatic transmission) the position of the gear selector in which the car will move forward, changing gears automatically as required: he threw the car into drive. ∎ Comput. short for disk drive. 5. (in ball games) a forceful stroke made with a free swing of the bat, racket, or foot against the ball. ∎ Golf a shot from the tee. 6. an act of driving a group of animals to a particular destination. PHRASES: drive something home see home. what someone is driving at the point that someone is attempting to make: I don't understand what you're driving at.DERIVATIVES: driv·a·bil·i·ty / ˌdrīvəˈbilitē/ (also drive·a·bil·i·ty) n. driv·a·ble (also drive·a·ble) adj. |
|
|
Cite this article
"drive." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "drive." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-drive.html "drive." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-drive.html |
|
drive
drive drive-by shooting a shooting carried out from a passing vehicle; the term is recorded in the US from the early 1980s, and was linked particularly with rival teenage gangs and with the drug culture. The term drive-by soon began to be used figuratively, especially in implying a hit-and-run approach to a subject, as in drive-by documentary and drive-by journalism.
drive gently over the stones traditional advice to the inexperienced; saying recorded from the early 18th century. you can drive out Nature with a pitchfork, but she keeps on coming back proverbial saying, mid 16th century; originally, with reference to the Epistles of the Roman poet Horace (65–8 bc), ‘Naturam expelles furca, tamen usque recurret [You may drive out nature with a pitchfork, yet she'll be constantly running back].’ |
|
|
Cite this article
ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "drive." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "drive." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-drive.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "drive." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-drive.html |
|
drive
drive An outdated term used formerly to describe a type of motivation in animals, the psychological ‘force’ that leads to physical action. The term was abandoned because ‘force’ in the sense of ‘physical energy’ plays no direct part in psychological processes, the attempt to attribute a drive to each aspect of behaviour led to an uncontrollable proliferation of drives, and, ultimately, because the concept lacks explanatory power.
|
|
|
Cite this article
MICHAEL ALLABY. "drive." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "drive." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-drive.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "drive." A Dictionary of Zoology. 1999. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O8-drive.html |
|
drive
drive A means of turning the mounting of a telescope to counteract the motion of a celestial object across the sky as the Earth rotates; also called a clock drive. An electric or a clockwork motor is used to drive the telescope or, in older telescopes, a slowly falling weight. Electronics can control the rate of the motor and provide speed corrections to compensate for mechanical errors in the telescope mounting and the effects of atmospheric refraction.
|
|
|
Cite this article
"drive." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "drive." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O80-drive.html "drive." A Dictionary of Astronomy. 1997. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O80-drive.html |
|
drive
drive An outdated term used formerly to describe a type of motivation in animals, the psychological ‘force’ that leads to physical action. The term was abandoned because ‘force’ in the sense of ‘physical energy’ plays no direct part in psychological processes, and because the attempt to attribute a drive to each aspect of behaviour led to an uncontrollable proliferation of drives.
|
|
|
Cite this article
MICHAEL ALLABY. "drive." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "drive." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-drive.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "drive." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-drive.html |
|
drive
drive force to move before one; move or advance rapidly; carry on vigorously. OE. drīfan = OS. drīban (Du. drijven), OHG. trīban (G. treiben), ON. drifa, Goth. dreiban :- Gmc. str. vb. *drīban, with no certain cogns. outside Gmc.
Hence drive sb. act of driving XVII; carriage road XIX. |
|
|
Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "drive." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "drive." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-drive.html T. F. HOAD. "drive." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-drive.html |
|
drive
drive The motivation that results in an animal performing a particular activity. There are two types: primary drive, which arises as a direct result of tissue requirements (e.g. the need for food or water); and secondary drive, resulting from learned behaviour.
|
|
|
Cite this article
"drive." A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "drive." A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O6-drive.html "drive." A Dictionary of Biology. 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O6-drive.html |
|
Drive
|
|
|
Cite this article
"Drive." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "Drive." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300566.html "Drive." Dictionary of Collective Nouns and Group Terms. 1985. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-2505300566.html |
|
drive
drive Short for disk drive or tape drive, magnetic or optical.
|
|
|
Cite this article
JOHN DAINTITH. "drive." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN DAINTITH. "drive." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O11-drive.html JOHN DAINTITH. "drive." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O11-drive.html |
|
drive
drive
•alive, arrive, chive, Clive, connive, contrive, deprive, dive, drive, five, gyve, hive, I've, jive, live, MI5, revive, rive, shrive, skive, strive, survive, swive, thrive
•skydive • swan dive • nosedive
•swallow dive • scuba-dive • Argive
•beehive • archive
|
|
|
Cite this article
"drive." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "drive." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-drive.html "drive." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-drive.html |
|
Search over 100 encyclopedias and dictionaries:
HighBeam™ Research, Inc. © Copyright 2012. All rights reserved.
The Encyclopedia.com advertising network includes:
