Synonyms of drove

drove 1 of 2

noun

ˈdrōv 

1

as in flock

a great number of persons or creatures massed together

people flocked to the annual festival in droves

Synonyms & Similar Words

• flock
• swarm
• throng
• crowd
• horde
• multitude
• mob
• crush
• bike
• herd
• host
• army
• legion
• mass
• press
• rout
• cram
• masses
• millions
• scrum
• pile
• rabble
• mountain
• rabblement
• gaggle
• jam
• heap
• riffraff
• logjam

2

as in swarm

a group of domestic animals assembled or herded together

a drove of cattle

Synonyms & Similar Words

• flock
• swarm
• herd
• school
• pack
• colony
• covey
• pod
• gaggle
• plump

drove

2 of 2

verb

past tense of drive

1

as in ran

to urge, push, or force onward

cowboys drove the herd of cattle from San Antonio to San Francisco

Synonyms & Similar Words

• ran
• punched
• shepherded
• herded
• whipped
• pressed
• spurred
• hounded
• prompted
• prodded
• goaded
• exhorted
• wrangled
• pricked
• egged
• flogged
• scourged

2

as in rode

to travel by a motorized vehicle

I'm going to drive across the country—want to come?

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rode
• motored
• raced
• tooled
• taxied
• automobiled
• rolled
• chauffeured
• wheeled
• dragged
• hacked
• joyrode

3

as in pushed

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

drove the plunger into the opening

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pushed
• shoved
• propelled
• thrust
• moved
• forced
• squeezed
• impelled
• compelled
• pressured
• bore (down)
• jammed
• compressed
• weighed (upon)
• depressed
• leaned (on or against)
• squashed
• rammed
• bulldozed
• muscled

4

as in forced

to cause (a person) to give in to pressure

the corrupt governor was driven out of office

Synonyms & Similar Words

• forced
• compelled
• coerced
• obliged
• obligated
• pressured
• pressed
• impelled
• impressed
• dragooned
• constrained
• made
• muscled
• sandbagged
• blackjacked
• blackmailed
• bullied
• intimidated
• dragged
• threatened
• bulldozed
• hectored
• browbeat
• twisted one's arm
• terrorized
• menaced
• cowed
• badgered
• hounded
• shamed
• harassed
• high-pressured

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• let
• allowed
• permitted
• moved
• convinced
• induced
• argued
• satisfied
• won (over)
• talked (into)
• persuaded
• prevailed (on or upon)

5

as in triggered

to cause to function

machinery driven by waterpower

Synonyms & Similar Words

• triggered
• sparked
• activated
• moved
• started
• fueled
• powered
• generated
• ran
• pushed
• set off
• ignited
• provoked
• turned on
• charged
• touched off
• actuated
• cranked (up)
• fired
• electrified
• switched
• launched
• stimulated
• turned over
• released
• discharged
• tripped
• energized
• kicked over
• accelerated
• excited
• incited
• aroused
• recharged
• reactivated
• instigated
• quickened
• stirred up
• stepped up
• jump-started
• catalyzed
• kick-started
• sped (up)
• vitalized

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• killed
• cut
• stopped
• checked
• shut off
• turned off
• cut out
• stuck
• arrested
• halted
• cut off
• stalled
• jammed
• drew up
• slowed
• deactivated
• suppressed
• braked
• repressed
• stunted
• decelerated

6

as in moved

to set or keep in motion

this motor drives the gears, which then turn the shaft

Synonyms & Similar Words

• moved
• propelled
• activated
• worked
• impelled
• actuated
• triggered
• stimulated
• raised
• provoked
• motivated
• set off
• whipped (up)
• stirred (up)
• tripped
• incited
• abetted
• inspired
• roused
• fermented
• excited
• instigated
• aroused
• fomented
• fired (up)
• galvanized
• inflamed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• checked
• contained
• controlled
• regulated
• restrained
• constrained
• inhibited
• curbed
• bridled
• reined (in)

7

as in sped

to proceed or move quickly

the runner drove past the finish line and then came to a dead stop

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sped
• raced
• traveled
• flew
• hurried
• trotted
• scurried
• rushed
• chased
• jumped
• ran
• zipped
• buzzed
• scooted
• blew
• stepped
• darted
• blasted
• dashed
• scuttled
• tore
• rammed
• hustled
• bolted
• ripped
• zoomed
• bowled
• jogged
• whirled
• hurled
• motored
• hastened
• whisked
• rocketed
• blazed
• hurtled
• careened
• breezed
• rustled
• careered
• bundled
• barreled
• humped
• bustled
• shot
• pelted
• nipped
• coursed
• hied
• cracked (on)
• galloped
• jetted
• belted
• beat it
• bombed
• hared
• cannonballed
• stepped on it
• highballed
• flitted
• scampered
• sprinted
• shook a leg
• made tracks
• hotfooted (it)
• got a move on
• streaked
• whizzed
• accelerated
• stampeded
• scuffled
• overtook
• scudded
• beetled
• outpaced
• quickened
• stepped out
• outran
• outstripped
• caught up
• arrowed
• beelined
• fast-forwarded

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• crept
• crawled
• dragged
• poked
• lingered
• lagged
• poked
• strolled
• hung (around or out)
• loitered
• sauntered
• ambled
• shuffled
• tarried
• dallied
• plodded
• dawdled
• lumbered
• slowed (down or up)
• decelerated
• dillydallied

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of drove

Noun

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

Korea, after all, is where the term originated, and droves of K-beauty products are formulated specifically to achieve ultimate clarity, bounciness, and light-reflecting dewiness. —Sophie Wirt, InStyle, 5 Jan. 2026

Verb

The driver then drove into the city of Wheat Ridge and allegedly crashed into a Honda Pilot near Pierce Street and West 32nd Avenue several minutes later before continuing on. —Austen Erblat, CBS News, 27 Jan. 2026

In the 1990s, Weeks was a Corning vice president tapped to run a new optical fiber business to power the burgeoning internet—an innovation that drove Corning’s valuation to nearly $100 billion at the height of the internet bubble in 2000. —Sharon Goldman, Fortune, 27 Jan. 2026