drift
verb/drɪft/
/drɪft/
Verb Forms
Phrasal Verbs| present simple I / you / we / they drift | /drɪft/ /drɪft/ |
| he / she / it drifts | /drɪfts/ /drɪfts/ |
| past simple drifted | /ˈdrɪftɪd/ /ˈdrɪftɪd/ |
| past participle drifted | /ˈdrɪftɪd/ /ˈdrɪftɪd/ |
| -ing form drifting | /ˈdrɪftɪŋ/ /ˈdrɪftɪŋ/ |
- [intransitive] (+ adv./prep.) to move along smoothly and slowly in water or air
- Clouds drifted across the sky.
- The empty boat drifted out to sea.
- A cool breeze drifted through the open window.
- Smoke drifted across the room.
Extra Examples- The boat drifted slowly downstream.
- Smoke drifted up from the campfire.
- We drifted with the current.
- Cold and hungry, they drifted helplessly closer to the Arctic.
- The smoke drifted away on the breeze.
- A single snowflake drifted down and settled on the ground.
- Voices drifted up through the floorboards.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- slowly
- helplessly
- downstream
- …
- from
- to
- towards/toward
- …
- [intransitive] + adv./prep. to move or go somewhere slowly
- The crowd drifted away from the scene of the accident.
- Her gaze drifted around the room.
- People began to drift back to their houses.
Extra Examples- She drifted across the room to where we were standing.
- He spent the day drifting aimlessly about the house.
- They drifted around South-East Asia for a while and then headed into China.
- He allowed his thoughts to drift back to his conversation with Carrie.
- She finally drifted back to her home town.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- aimlessly
- gradually
- slowly
- …
- begin to
- seem to
- allow something to
- …
- about
- around
- round
- …
- [intransitive] (+ adv./prep.) to do something, happen or change without a particular plan or purpose
- I didn't intend to be a teacher—I just drifted into it.
- He hasn't decided what to do yet—he's just drifting.
- The conversation drifted onto politics.
- We seem to be drifting away from the point.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- aimlessly
- gradually
- slowly
- …
- begin to
- seem to
- allow something to
- …
- about
- around
- round
- …
- [intransitive] drift in/into something to go from one situation or state to another without realizing it
- Finally she drifted into sleep.
- The injured man tried to speak but soon drifted into unconsciousness.
- He drifted in and out of consciousness.
- She began to drift between sleep and wakefulness.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- aimlessly
- gradually
- slowly
- …
- begin to
- seem to
- allow something to
- …
- about
- around
- round
- …
- [intransitive] to be blown into large piles by the wind
- drifting sand
- Some roads are closed because of drifting.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadverb- slowly
- helplessly
- downstream
- …
- from
- to
- towards/toward
- …
- [transitive] + adv./prep. to make something float somewhere
- The logs are drifted downstream to the mill.
move slowly
without purpose
into state/situation
of snow/sand
float
Check pronunciation:
drift