drive-by

1 of 2

adjective

1
: carried out from a moving vehicle
a drive-by shooting
2
: done or made in a quick or cursory manner

drive-by

2 of 2

noun

plural drive-bys
: a drive-by shooting

Examples of drive-by in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
Now some families are afraid to sit outside or go get food Muhammad Afzaal Hussain, 27, was found on August 1 with multiple gunshot wounds by officers who responded to reports of a drive-by shooting, according to the complaint. Eric Levenson, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024 Just recently, Winans helped bring rival gang members known as the 4s and 5s together within Detroit schools to preach peace in the aftermath of a brutal January drive-by shooting of 11-year-old Latrelle Mines in the city's east side. Andrea May Sahouri, Detroit Free Press, 12 Mar. 2024 Torres died a year later in a drive-by shooting, court documents say. Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 7 Mar. 2024 Public Safety Woman fatally shot in La Jolla drive-by shooting was 2017 Poway High grad June 24, 2019 Both men were scheduled to go to trial this week on murder charges but pleaded guilty on Monday. City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Mar. 2024 The two were outside washing their car when they were injured in a drive-by shooting. Ella McCarthy, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2024 The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday that investigators have arrested a teenager in connection with a September drive-by shooting death of another Rio Linda boy. Ishani Desai, Sacramento Bee, 27 Feb. 2024 Combs allegedly told Jones to lie to the police and instead say that the man was hit in a drive-by shooting. Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 27 Feb. 2024 The charity basketball game in honor of metro Detroit teenager Khalil Amari Allen, who was killed in a drive-by shooting last summer, was canceled after the venue reported threats making the event unsafe. Detroit Free Press, 25 Feb. 2024
Noun
There’s a confidence to running your restaurant in a neighborhood that doesn’t rely on tourists, window shoppers or drive-by traffic. Mara Severin | Eating Out, Anchorage Daily News, 24 Mar. 2023 According to The Columbian, at the time of his arrest Sunday, Warren was out on bail after being charged with drive-by shooting, assault and felony harassment; he is accused of firing a gun at Melendez's apartment earlier this month. Tristan Balagtas, Peoplemag, 23 Mar. 2023 He was charged with drive-by shooting, second-degree assault with a deadly weapon, gross misdemeanor harassment with bodily injury and two counts of fourth-degree assault. Savannaheadens, oregonlive, 23 Mar. 2023 Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials on Tuesday announced a $20,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the drive-by killing of the father of former NBA player Richard Jefferson 4½ years ago. Paul Pringle, Los Angeles Times, 22 Mar. 2023 One of three suspects charged in the fatal drive-by shooting of a Huntsville toddler five years ago was convicted Wednesday of capital murder. Howard Koplowitz | Hkoplowitz@al.com, al, 22 Mar. 2023 With the highway running through it, Atoka already has more drive-by traffic than those towns. Priya Krishna, New York Times, 20 Mar. 2023 The pair usually do a drive-by perusal of the blossoms but decided to make a day of it this year. Marvin Joseph, Washington Post, 18 Mar. 2023 Three weeks later, he was arrested in connection with a drive-by shooting near a Tacoma, Wash., shopping mall. The Indianapolis Star, 17 Mar. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'drive-by.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

1968, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1977, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of drive-by was in 1968

Dictionary Entries Near drive-by

Cite this Entry

“Drive-by.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drive-by. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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