as in nomads
a person who roams about without a fixed route or destination
the drifter just packed up and moved on to the next dead-end job
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of drifters
The grocery survives thanks to passing bargemen and the drifters from the outskirts who frequent the café.
—
Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 14 May 2026
Detectives learned Lugo was the leader of a group made up of drifters and petty thieves who hung out at the Sun Gym.
—Troy Roberts, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2026
The men and women under his employ were a rag-tag gang of dreamers and drifters, brought together by a love for adventure, a disdain for the society that had thrown their friends away in Vietnam, and a desire to spread the gospel of ganja.
—Jack Crosbie, Rolling Stone, 17 Mar. 2026
The scene inspired future comedy gags showing drifters and tramps losing their pants to dogs chasing them.
—Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 29 Jan. 2026
Meeting drifters and friendly folk along the way, Alvin is doggedly determined to make amends while facing ailments of his own.
—James Mercadante, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Jan. 2026
Most of them were migrant workers, young drifters, and then some co-renters.
—Jack Hargreaves, The Dial, 9 Sep. 2025
Entrants included everything from historic race cars to JDM drifters, time attack competition cars and off-roaders.
—Trinity Francis, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Our study, published in the journal Nature in November 2022, describes a new method to infer tropical cyclone intensity from ocean currents, which are already being measured by an army of drifters.
—Shang-Ping Xie, The Conversation, 29 Nov. 2022
Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 14 May 2026
Detectives learned Lugo was the leader of a group made up of drifters and petty thieves who hung out at the Sun Gym.
—Troy Roberts, CBS News, 8 Apr. 2026
The men and women under his employ were a rag-tag gang of dreamers and drifters, brought together by a love for adventure, a disdain for the society that had thrown their friends away in Vietnam, and a desire to spread the gospel of ganja.
—Jack Crosbie, Rolling Stone, 17 Mar. 2026
The scene inspired future comedy gags showing drifters and tramps losing their pants to dogs chasing them.
—Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 29 Jan. 2026
Meeting drifters and friendly folk along the way, Alvin is doggedly determined to make amends while facing ailments of his own.
—James Mercadante, Entertainment Weekly, 20 Jan. 2026
Most of them were migrant workers, young drifters, and then some co-renters.
—Jack Hargreaves, The Dial, 9 Sep. 2025
Entrants included everything from historic race cars to JDM drifters, time attack competition cars and off-roaders.
—Trinity Francis, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Our study, published in the journal Nature in November 2022, describes a new method to infer tropical cyclone intensity from ocean currents, which are already being measured by an army of drifters.
—Shang-Ping Xie, The Conversation, 29 Nov. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drifters
Noun
-
Using advanced sensors and robotic manipulation, these nuclear nomads can perform inspections and repairs that previously required massive protective gear and strict time limits.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Under the Zagros Mountains outside Shiraz, a family of Iranian nomads and their reticent sons investigate the disappearance of twelve sheep while navigating their flock through the modern city of poets in this dreamy documentary.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
16 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The cougars that make their way through Minnesota are believed to be lone wanderers from the Dakotas and Nebraska.—
Aki Nace,
CBS News,
1 May 2026
-
On stage, Josh and Melissa, our wanderers from the land of reality, are subsumed into an actual musical rather than a vaguely Truman Show-style refraction.—
Greg Evans,
Deadline,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
However, the administration has barred travelers from Iran and Haiti, though World Cup players, coaches and other support personnel are exempt.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
14 May 2026
-
Grand Hyatt’s bread is buttered with business travelers, and the wide desks and plentiful power outlets around the room confirm that this outpost is a prime example of that.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Drifters.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drifters. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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