1
as in to flow
to move or proceed smoothly and readily
casual conversation drifting from one topic to another
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to hover
to rest or move along the surface of a liquid or in the air
the boat drifted along on the current
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to wander
to move about from place to place aimlessly
spent several years drifting from town to town, picking up odd jobs whenever he needed cash
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
2
as in tide
a prevailing or general movement or inclination
the steady drift of the population away from large cities
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in sense
the idea that is conveyed or intended to be conveyed to the mind by language, symbol, or action
you should expect a visit from the stork, if you get my drift
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 drift
Christopher Kamrani, New York Times, 24 July 2025
That amount drifted down to about 28 million on July 23.
—Ricardo Torres, jsonline.com, 23 July 2025
Max Kim, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2025
Millions of Americans across four states have been urged to stay indoors and avoid strenuous activity this weekend as air quality plummets to dangerous levels and smoke drifts south from massive Canadian wildfires.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for drift
Verb
Football, meanwhile, was still drifting about in his mind.
—Christopher Kamrani, New York Times, 24 July 2025
That amount drifted down to about 28 million on July 23.
—Ricardo Torres, jsonline.com, 23 July 2025
Noun
Whether the rightward drift of young South Korean men is a temporary deviation or a more serious forecast for South Korea’s democracy is still an open question, according to Kim.
—Max Kim, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2025
Millions of Americans across four states have been urged to stay indoors and avoid strenuous activity this weekend as air quality plummets to dangerous levels and smoke drifts south from massive Canadian wildfires.
—Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for drift
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drift
Verb
-
All traffic flows through a single, unified policy engine with common enforcement points.—
Etay Maor,
Forbes.com,
24 July 2025
-
The mountain slopes tend to erode when saturated, especially after wildfires, resulting in potentially deadly debris flows.—
Andrew Freedman,
CNN Money,
24 July 2025
Verb
-
Gold has been hovering in the mid-$3,300s this week, but a change in the appetite for stocks could raise demand for the precious metal.—
Catherine Brock,
Forbes.com,
16 July 2025
-
Our first destination, with the hazy sun hovering over the Norway pine trees skirting Mirror Lake, was the beach bar.—
Rachel Bernhard,
jsonline.com,
15 July 2025
Verb
-
Between all that, cosplayers wander around and fans stop to buy action figures, play video games and meet their favorite artists.—
Olivia Petty,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
14 July 2025
-
The clinic recommends taking actions including wearing bug spray with DEET, wearing gloves when dealing with animals that could be infected, and not allowing pets to wander around outside if located in an area that is known to have plague.—
Chantelle Lee,
Time,
11 July 2025
Noun
-
Before the season started, the idea of Ohtani returning to the mound for the Dodgers seemed like a quaint midseason development.—
Grant Brisbee,
New York Times,
22 July 2025
-
After brushing back former Stanford teammate Kyle Stowers with his first pitch to him Sunday, Bubic induced a soft comebacker to the mound two pitches later, stranding runners on second and third to end the first inning.—
Steve Gorten,
Miami Herald,
20 July 2025
Noun
-
Trying to stop it is like ordering the tides to stop.—
Matt O'Brien,
Chicago Tribune,
23 July 2025
-
And—more than most—Jordan knows that this is a tide that can move back in the other direction.—
Helen Shaw,
New Yorker,
22 July 2025
Noun
-
The loud, brazen demeanor adopted by many pastors inspires mass trances and a sense of divine supremacy.—
Emi Eleode,
Time,
14 July 2025
-
Such easy overlap between juror and filmmaker speaks to a wider festival goal toward building a real sense of community within the genre world.—
Ben Croll,
Variety,
14 July 2025
Verb
-
Employees glide swiftly through the open kitchen, sprinkling tacos with In-A-Tub’s signature orange cheese dust.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
18 July 2025
-
Even when it's packed full, the wheels glide like a dream over multiple surfaces with no wayward drifting (usually a point of failure for softsides that may lean with weight).—
Jamie Hergenrader,
Travel + Leisure,
15 July 2025
Verb
-
The sports arena floated as a solution to save the State Fair site never materialized, but new buildings did begin to replace the old on the fairgrounds, including a 1,000-seat amphitheater in 1974 and a new Coliseum in 1976.—
Chris Foran,
jsonline.com,
24 July 2025
-
Musk originally floated the retro-diner concept in 2018, with city construction approvals for the Hollywood location secured in 2023.—
Theo Burman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Drift.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drift. Accessed 30 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share