drove

1 of 2

noun

ˈdrōv 

1

: a group of animals driven or moving in a body

2

: a large number : crowd

—usually used in plural especially with in

came in droves

drove

2 of 2

past tense of drive

Synonyms of drove

Noun

• flock
• swarm
• throng
• crowd
• horde

Examples of drove in a Sentence

Noun

people flocked to the annual festival in droves

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Sanders moved to Vermont, year-round and for good, in 1968, when droves of young people from all over the country headed for the hills. —Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026

The hospitals remained open, hiring droves of temporary nurses to try to fill the labor gap. —David R. Martin, Chicago Tribune, 12 Jan. 2026

Join the droves of Amazon shoppers buying cozy Hanes sweatshirts while popular pieces are going for $15 or less. —Isabel Garcia, PEOPLE, 10 Jan. 2026

Anunoby snap-drove, touched the paint, then hit Brunson, who had relocated to the opposite corner. —Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 8 Jan. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Old English drāf, from drīfan to drive — more at drive

First Known Use

Noun

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing drove

• drove him to an early grave

Rhymes for drove

• clove
• cove
• rove
• shrove
• stove
• strove
• throve
• trove
• wove
• alcove
• mangrove

Kids Definition

drove

1 of 2 noun

ˈdrōv 

1

: a group of animals driven or moving in a body

2

: a crowd of people moving or acting together

drove

2 of 2

past of drive

Etymology

Noun

Old English drāf "group of animals moving together," from drīfan "to drive"