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drive

noun

Synonyms and Antonyms of drive

1 a passage cleared for public vehicular travel

  • raced our motorcycles along the drive
Synonyms of drive

arterial, artery, avenue, boulevard, carriageway [British], drag, expressway, freeway, high road, highway, pass, pike, road, roadway, route, row, street, thoroughfare, thruway, trace, turnpike, way
Words Related to drive

causeway

autobahn, autoroute, autostrada, dual carriageway [chiefly British], interstate, motorway [chiefly British], superhighway

beltway, bypass, parkway, ring road [chiefly British]

corniche, switchback

through street

high street [British], Main Street

backstreet, branch, bystreet, byway, crossroad, secondary road, shunpike, side road, side street

alley, alleyway

circle, lane, laneway [British], mews [chiefly British], place

close [chiefly British], cul-de-sac, dead end

corridor

track, trail

2 a series of activities undertaken to achieve a goal

  • a fund-raising drive for the schoolʼs marching band
Synonyms of drive

bandwagon, blitz, campaign, cause, crusade, juggernaut, movement, push
Words Related to drive

assault, attack, maneuver, march, offensive

action, bid, enterprise, initiative, mission, project, undertaking

3 a strong wish for something

  • a drive to succeed in the television news business
Synonyms of drive

appetency, appetite, craving, desire, hankering, hunger, itch, jones [slang], letch, longing, lust, passion, pining, thirst, thirstiness, urge, yearning, yen
Words Related to drive

compulsion, impulse, impulsion, will, zeal

liking, love, taste, weakness

eagerness, impatience

want, wish

necessity, need, requirement

obsession

acquisitiveness, avarice, avariciousness, avidity, covetousness, cupidity, greed, greediness, rapaciousness, rapacity

cacoëthes, mania
Near Antonyms of drive

abhorrence, abomination, allergy, averseness, aversion, disfavor, disgust, disinclination, dislike, disliking, distaste, hatred, loathing, nausea, repugnance, repulsion, revulsion

apathy, indifference, insouciance, nonchalance, unconcern

4 active strength of body or mind

  • senior citizens who exercise regularly are more likely to have the drive to keep up with their grandchildren
Synonyms of drive

beans, bounce, brio, dash, dynamism, energy, esprit, gas, get-up-and-go, ginger, go, gusto, hardihood, juice, life, moxie, oomph, pep, punch, sap, snap, starch, verve, vigor, vim, vinegar, vitality, zing, zip
Words Related to drive

animal spirits, animation, briskness, jauntiness, liveliness, snappiness, spirit, spiritedness, sprightliness, spunk, spunkiness, vibrance, vibrancy, vivaciousness, vivacity

ardor, élan, fervor, fire, passion, zeal

main, metal, mettle, might, muscle, potency, power, puissance, stamina, strength

brawniness, fitness, hardiness, huskiness, sturdiness, virility

health, healthiness, soundness, verdure, wellness
Near Antonyms of drive

indolence, laziness

debilitation, debility, delicacy, disablement, enfeeblement, faintness, feebleness, frailness, frailty, impotence, impotency, infirmity, powerlessness, puniness, slightness, softness, tenderness, weakness

enervation, exhaustion, inanition, prostration
Antonyms of drive

lethargy, listlessness, sluggishness, torpidity

5 readiness to engage in daring or difficult activity

  • a great opportunity for a sales representative who is full of drive
Synonyms of drive

action, aggressiveness, ambition, enterprise, go, hustle, initiative
Words Related to drive

grit, gumption, pluck, snap, spirit, spunk, starch

ambitiousness, killer instinct, overambitiousness

assertiveness, self-reliance

energy, hardihood, pep, vigor, vitality
Near Antonyms of drive

inactivity, inertia, passivity

diffidence, faintheartedness, timidity

hesitation, reluctance

indolence, laziness, lethargy

drive

verb

Synonyms and Antonyms of drive

1 to urge, push, or force onward

  • cowboys drove the herd of cattle from San Antonio to San Francisco
Synonyms of drive

herd, punch, run
Words Related to drive

shepherd

wrangle

egg, exhort, flog, goad, hound, press, prick, prod, prompt, scourge, spur, whip

2 to travel by a motorized vehicle

  • Iʼm going to drive across the country—want to come?
Synonyms of drive

automobile, motor, tool
Words Related to drive

roll, wheel

joyride

chauffeur, hack, taxi

ride

drag, race

3 to apply force to (someone or something) so that it moves in front of one

  • drove the plunger into the opening
Synonyms of drive

propel, push, shove, thrust
Words Related to drive

impel, move

bear (down), compress, depress, jam, pressure, squash, squeeze, weigh (upon)

bulldoze, compel, force, lean (on or against), muscle, ram

4 to cause (a person) to give in to pressure

  • the corrupt governor was driven out of office
Synonyms of drive

blackjack, coerce, compel, constrain, dragoon, force, impel, impress, make, muscle, obligate, oblige, press, pressure, sandbag
Words Related to drive

browbeat, bulldoze, bully, cow, hector, intimidate

blackmail, high-pressure, menace, shame, terrorize, threaten

drag

badger, harass, hound
Phrases Synonymous with drive

twist one's arm
Near Antonyms of drive

allow, let, permit

argue, convince, induce, move, persuade, prevail (on or upon), satisfy, talk (into), win (over)

5 to cause to function

  • machinery driven by waterpower
Synonyms of drive

activate, actuate, crank (up), move, run, set off, spark, start, touch off, trigger, turn on
Words Related to drive

kick over, turn over

charge, electrify, energize, fire, fuel, generate, power, push

discharge, launch, release, switch, trip

reactivate, recharge

arouse, excite, jump-start, kick-start, stimulate, vitalize

ignite, incite, instigate, provoke, quicken, stir up

accelerate, catalyze, speed (up), step up
Near Antonyms of drive

arrest, brake, check, cut off, draw up, halt, jam, stall, stick, stop

decelerate, repress, slow, stunt, suppress
Antonyms of drive

cut, cut out, deactivate, kill, shut off, turn off

6 to set or keep in motion

  • this motor drives the gears, which then turn the shaft
Synonyms of drive

actuate, impel, move, propel, work
Words Related to drive

activate, motivate, provoke

abet, ferment, foment, incite, raise, stir (up), whip (up)

set off, trigger, trip

arouse, excite, fire (up), galvanize, inflame (also enflame), inspire, instigate, rouse, stimulate
Near Antonyms of drive

bridle, check, constrain, contain, control, curb, inhibit, regulate, rein (in), restrain

7 to proceed or move quickly

  • the runner drove past the finish line and then came to a dead stop
Synonyms of drive

barrel, belt, blast, blaze, blow, bolt, bomb [slang], bowl, breeze, bundle, bustle, buzz, cannonball, careen, career, chase, course, crack (on), dash, fly, hare, hasten, hie, highball, hotfoot (it), hump, hurl, hurry, hurtle, hustle, jet, jump, motor, nip, pelt, race, ram, rip, rocket, run, rush, rustle, scoot, scurry, scuttle, shoot, speed, step, tear, travel, trot, whirl, whisk, zip, zoom
Words Related to drive

beetle, dart, flit, scamper, scud, scuffle

stampede, streak, whiz (or whizz)

gallop, jog, sprint

accelerate, quicken, step out

catch up, fast-forward, outpace, outrun, outstrip, overtake

arrow, beeline
Phrases Synonymous with drive

beat it, get a move on, make tracks, shake a leg, step on it
Near Antonyms of drive

dally, dawdle, dillydally, drag, hang (around or out), lag, linger, loiter, poke, tarry

amble, lumber, plod, saunter, shuffle, stroll

decelerate, slow (down or up)
Antonyms of drive

crawl, creep, poke

Synonym Discussion of drive

move, actuate, drive, impel mean to set or keep in motion. move is very general and implies no more than the fact of changing position.
    • moved the furniture
actuate stresses transmission of power so as to work or set in motion.
    • turbines actuated by waterpower
drive implies imparting forward and continuous motion and often stresses the effect rather than the impetus.
    • a ship driven aground by hurricane winds
impel is usually figurative and suggests a great motivating impetus.
    • a candidate impelled by ambition

Learn More about drive

  1. Dictionary: Definition of drive Medical Dictionary: Definition of drive Spanish Central: Translation of drive Nglish: Translation of drive for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of drive for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about drive

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