DRIVES Synonyms: 344 Similar and Opposite Words

drives 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of drive

as in runs

to urge, push, or force onward cowboys drove the herd of cattle from San Antonio to San Francisco

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Relevance

as in motors

to travel by a motorized vehicle I'm going to drive across the country—want to come?

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as in pushes

to apply force to (someone or something) so that it moves in front of one drove the plunger into the opening

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as in compels

to cause (a person) to give in to pressure the corrupt governor was driven out of office

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in activates

to cause to function machinery driven by waterpower

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as in moves

to set or keep in motion this motor drives the gears, which then turn the shaft

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as in speeds

to proceed or move quickly the runner drove past the finish line and then came to a dead stop

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drives

2 of 2

noun

plural of drive

as in highways

a passage cleared for public vehicular travel raced our motorcycles along the drive

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as in campaigns

a series of activities undertaken to achieve a goal a fund-raising drive for the school's marching band

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of drives

Verb

Locarno Pro itself drives to identify opportunities during good times and industry malaise. — John Hopewell, Variety, 14 Aug. 2026 The longtime Disney executive had most recently served as chairman of Disney Experiences, the unit that includes the theme parks, cruise lines and consumer products, and which drives profitability for the company. — Lillian Rizzo, CNBC, 14 Aug. 2026 In mammalian aging, the abrupt changes show there is some kind of signaling that drives the system. — Ingrid Wickelgren, Quanta Magazine, 14 Aug. 2026 Females prefer these waters to reproduce, and during the summer male rays have a higher metabolism that drives them to seek out food in the invertebrates along the shore, Lowe said. — ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026 Again, that doesn’t really bother me because super-heavy energy recuperation drives me nuts, but there’s no practical reason the vehicle simply can’t retain that choice. — Adam Ismail, The Drive, 13 Aug. 2026 There’s no plugging-in and the petrol engine never drives the car. — New Atlas, 13 Aug. 2026 But that’s also the thing that drives us to positive change, and nostalgia’s very much an ingredient of that. — Jinae West, The Atlantic, 13 Aug. 2026 Uptime drives revenue, reliability protects reputation, and service quality strengthens customer relationships. — Natalie Lemke, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026

Noun

Back-to-back 3-and-out drives also didn’t help and Lake Mary only gained about 45 yards in the second half. — Chris Hays, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 Aug. 2026 The first pick of the second round caught seven passes for 63 yards on his three drives, including two impressive catches on the TD drive. — ABC News, 14 Aug. 2026 Combs' attorneys claim the footage used in the episode matches the material contained in Combs' computer drives. — Edward Segarra, USA Today, 13 Aug. 2026 However, Samuelsen noted that in the past week alone, TWU has gained nearly 400 members, with successful organizing drives for 220 municipal workers in Brick Township, NJ and for about 60 New York City diesel mechanics. — Ted Reed, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 With more powerful components, spacious storage, and plenty of ports for external drives and other peripherals, a desktop tower is a great addition to a dorm or bedroom, especially for students in the arts and sciences. — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 12 Aug. 2026 At its center is Babe Bunyan, a towering, enigmatic axman whose search for identity and belonging drives the story toward an explosive conclusion. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 10 Aug. 2026 The cinema-verite trailblazer Kopple, who just turned 80, completes her trilogy about labor activism that began 50 years ago with Harlan Country, USA by looking at a trio of union-organizing drives against Jeff Bezos’ Amazon in her native New York. — Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 5 Aug. 2026 In our natural state, the sensuous and formal drives conflict with each other. — The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 5 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for drives

Verb

Across the sector as a whole, average payout now runs closer to seven percent, but that average conceals where the money sits.

— Vandana Arcot, Fortune, 14 Aug. 2026
The deepening rift comes as da Silva, a leftist, runs for a fourth term.

— Rafi Schwartz, TheWeek, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of runs

Verb

Frank’s ruling keeps the proposal to raise the homestead exemption up to $250,000 for Florida property owners on the ballot, but compels Attorney General James Uthmeier to rewrite parts of the plan.

— Romy Ellenbogen Herald, Miami Herald, 4 Aug. 2026
The competitive pressure to achieve maximal adoption compels a convergence toward openness.

— Gerui Wang, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026

Definition of compels

Verb

Founded by Gracia Walker and Benjamin Silver, Broc Shot centers on sulforaphane, a compound derived from broccoli seed that activates the NRF2 pathway, part of the body’s natural defense system.

— Ryma Chikhoune, Footwear News, 12 Aug. 2026
Pinching and holding both buds at the same time activates a new Audio Snapshot mode that records phone call audio or incoming sound and syncs it to the Nothing X app.

— Mark Knapp, PC Magazine, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of activates

Verb

Pitch a idea for a team huddle, and let your expressive style set a cooperative tone that moves decisions forward.

— Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 10 Aug. 2026
The judge’s order paused the rollout of the surcharge on high-value second homes in the city while a lawsuit brought by a group of homeowners moves forward.

— Katherine Koretski, CNN Money, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of moves

Noun

Trains and highways were shut down, and thousands of travelers were stranded at Narita International Airport, which serves Tokyo.

— NPR Staff, NPR, 14 Aug. 2026
Our internal highways are made up of intricate webs of nerves, arteries and glands that snake in and out of our organs.

— Mary Randolph, Scientific American, 11 Aug. 2026