drill

1 of 6

verb (1)

ˈdril 

drilled; drilling; drills

transitive verb

1

a

: to fix something in the mind or habit pattern of by repetitive instruction

drill pupils in spelling

b

: to impart or communicate by repetition

c

: to train or exercise in military drill

2

a(1)

: to bore or drive a hole in

(2)

: to make by piercing action

drill a hole

b

: to shoot with or as if with a gun

c(1)

: to propel (something, such as a ball) with force or accuracy

drilled a single to right field

(2)

: to hit with force

drilled the batter with the first pitch

intransitive verb

1

: to make a hole with a drill

2

: to engage in an exercise

drillability

ˌdri-lə-ˈbi-lə-tē 

noun

drillable

ˈdri-lə-bəl 

adjective

driller

ˈdri-lər 

noun

drill

2 of 6

noun (1)

1

: an instrument with an edged or pointed end for making holes in hard substances by revolving or by a succession of blows

also : a machine for operating such an instrument

2

: the act or exercise of training soldiers in marching and in executing prescribed movements with a weapon

3

a

: a physical or mental exercise aimed at perfecting facility and skill especially by regular practice

b

: a formal exercise by a team of marchers

c

: the approved, correct, or usual procedure for accomplishing something : routine

4

a

: a marine snail (Urosalpinx cinerea) destructive to oysters by boring through their shells and feeding on the soft parts

b

: any of several mollusks related to the drill

5

: a drilling sound

drill

3 of 6

noun (2)

: a western African baboon (Mandrillus leucophaeus synonym Papio leucophaeus) having a black face and brown coat and closely related to the mandrill

drill

4 of 6

noun (3)

1

a

: a shallow furrow or trench into which seed is sown

b

: a row of seed sown in such a furrow

2

: a planting implement that makes holes or furrows, drops in the seed and sometimes fertilizer, and covers them with earth

drill

5 of 6

verb (2)

drilled; drilling; drills

transitive verb

1

: to sow (seeds) by dropping along a shallow furrow

2

a

: to sow with seed or set with seedlings inserted in drills

b

: to distribute seed or fertilizer in by means of a drill

drill

6 of 6

noun (4)

: a durable cotton twilled fabric

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• bore
• hole
• perforate
• pierce
• punch
• puncture
• riddle

Noun (1)

• grind
• groove
• lockstep
• pattern
• rote
• routine
• rut
• treadmill

Verb (2)

• plant
• put in
• seed
• sow

Examples of drill in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Rafael Devers then drilled a liner off the glove of Ramón Urías to put the Sox ahead, 4-3. —Alex Speier, BostonGlobe.com, 10 Sep. 2023

Depending on their size, as many as 20 button blanks could be drilled from a single shell. —The Indianapolis Star, 5 Sep. 2023

Brooks drilled a three-pointer to tie the game 80-80 with 1:12 left to play. —oregonlive, 4 Sep. 2023

In rural Arizona, groundwater is largely unregulated; whoever has the money can drill a well and lay claim to the water. —Wade Davis, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2023

Benson and his colleagues studied samples of both smectite and illite drilled from the ground throughout the caldera. —Rahul Rao, Popular Science, 30 Aug. 2023

The relative, whom residents identified as a superintendent at a nearby building, drilled a hole in the door to remove the lock when no one answered his knock. —Zachary Small, New York Times, 29 Aug. 2023

Some 40 geothermal power plants, such as the massive Geysers geothermal field some 70 miles north of San Francisco, produce electricity by drilling wells and piping steam or hot water to the surface. —Rob Nikolewski, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Aug. 2023

Ask a handyman to drill holes in the sill to let any moisture drain to the exterior of your home rather than dripping down inside the walls. —Stefanie Waldek, House Beautiful, 23 Aug. 2023

Noun

The drills are intended to test the agencies’ operational coordination, communications and response to security threats, which Metro said could appear as real emergencies and alarm people living or working in the area. —Justin George, Washington Post, 15 Sep. 2023

Small changes to practice drills and gameplay could make a huge difference for young athletes, says Nowinski. —Celia Ford, WIRED, 12 Sep. 2023

There is little chatter, the sounds of drills and pickaxes fill the air. —Stuart Ramsay, NBC News, 11 Sep. 2023

Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson going through a passing drill at Under Armour Performance Center on Wednesday, September 6, 2023. —Baltimore Sun Staff, Baltimore Sun, 7 Sep. 2023

Four months after signing a $255 million contract, Hurts was doing push-ups at the end of a recent practice and getting chewed out by Sirianni after messing up a two-minute drill. —Ben Volin, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Sep. 2023

Products on Temu’s app and website are organized into 30 major categories, which range from clothes to homeware to power drills and pet food. —Molly Peck, Journal Sentinel, 2 Sep. 2023

The large-scale military drill, which in 2021 involved 200,000 troops, was a key mobilization effort for the Soviet Union. —Ellen Nakashima, Washington Post, 4 Sep. 2023

Trujillo, who joined the band in 2003 after working with the likes of Ozzy Osbourne and Suicidal Tendencies, prepared for the tour by running drills on a field, surfing and doing body-weight workouts. —Chris Kornelis, WSJ, 4 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

Dutch drillen

Noun (2)

origin unknown

Noun (3)

perhaps from drill small stream, from obsolete drill to trickle, drip

Noun (4)

short for drilling

First Known Use

Verb (1)

1619, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1a

Noun (1)

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (2)

1644, in the meaning defined above

Noun (3)

1727, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Verb (2)

circa 1740, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (4)

1743, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing drill

• breast drill
• drill team
• drill down
• drill into
• know the drill
• pre-drill
• oyster drill
• drill press
• twist drill
• drill sergeant
• fire drill
• pneumatic drill

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• breast drill
• drill team
• drill down
• drill into
• know the drill
• pre-drill
• oyster drill
• drill press
• twist drill
• drill sergeant
• fire drill
• pneumatic drill

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Kids Definition

drill

1 of 5 noun

ˈdril 

1

: a tool for making holes in hard substances

2

: the training of soldiers in military skill and discipline

3

: a physical or mental exercise regularly practiced

4

: a marine snail that bores through oyster shells and feeds on the soft parts

drill

2 of 5 verb

1

: to instruct or train by repetition

drill a child in multiplication

drill troops

2

: to bore or make a hole in with or as if with a drill

drill a tooth

drill a hole

driller noun

drill

3 of 5 noun

1

: a shallow furrow or trench into which seed is sown

2

: a planting machine that makes holes or furrows, drops in seed, and covers it with earth

drill

4 of 5 verb

: to sow with or as if with a drill

drill

5 of 5 noun

: a strong cotton fabric in twill weave

Etymology

Noun

probably from Dutch dril "a tool for drilling holes," derived from early Dutch drillen (verb) "to drill"

Noun

perhaps from earlier drill "a trickling stream"

Noun

shortened from drilling "heavy cotton fabric," from German Drillich (same meaning)

Medical Definition

drill

1 of 2 transitive verb

ˈdril 

: to make a hole in with a drill

the dentist drilled the tooth for a filling

intransitive verb

: to make a hole with a drill

painless dental drilling

drill

2 of 2 noun

: an instrument with an edged or pointed end for making holes in hard substances (as bones or teeth) by revolving