Wordul · all words

verb · 1 syllable · /drɪft/

DRIFT

What does "DRIFT" mean?

To be carried slowly by a current of water or air.

Meanings

  1. To be moved gradually and passively by a current or force. The boat drifted out to sea while they slept.
  2. To move or change gradually without purpose or control. Over the years the old friends drifted apart. figurative
  3. A mass of snow, sand, or leaves heaped up by wind. A snowdrift blocked the front door overnight.
  4. The general meaning or tendency of something said. I didn't catch every word, but I got his drift. informal

Did you know?

  • Alfred Wegener proposed continental drift in 1912, arguing the continents float and wander - an idea ridiculed for decades before plate tectonics proved him right.

Word origin

From Middle English 'drift' (a driving, a herd), from Old Norse 'drift', related to 'drive' - literally 'that which is driven'.

Remember it

DRIFT is what gets DRIVEN by something else - wind, water, current - and shares its root with 'drive'.

A little poem

No oar, and no shore-
the leaf trusts the brown river
to know where it goes.

haiku

Wordplay

  • I started talking about ocean currents and lost everyone. I guess they didn't catch my drift.

What it teaches

Drift feels like rest but it isn't: the current decides your destination if you don't.

Quick facts

What does DRIFT mean?

To be carried slowly by a current of water or air.

Is DRIFT a valid word?

Yes — DRIFT is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.

How many letters is DRIFT?

DRIFT has 5 letters and 1 syllable.

Where does DRIFT come from?

From Middle English 'drift' (a driving, a herd), from Old Norse 'drift', related to 'drive' - literally 'that which is driven'.

What can DRIFT teach us?

Drift feels like rest but it isn't: the current decides your destination if you don't.

How players do

Be the first to solve it.

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