verb

find

I. find¹ S1 W1 /faɪnd/ BrE AmE verb (past tense and past participle found /faʊnd/) [transitive]
[Language: Old English; Origin: findan]
1. GET BY SEARCHING to discover, see, or get something that you have been searching for:
I can’t find the car keys.
Hold on while I find a pen.
Her body was later found hidden in the bushes.
I have to find somewhere else to live.
She had almost given up hope of finding a husband.
find somebody something
Tony asked us to find him office facilities in New York.
Her mother went to the shops, and on her return, Kathleen was nowhere to be found (=could not be found).
2. SEE BY CHANCE to discover something by chance, especially something useful or interesting:
I found a purse in the street.
We found a nice pub near the hotel.
3. DISCOVER STATE OF SOMEBODY/SOMETHING to discover that someone or something is in a particular condition or doing a particular thing when you see or touch them:
I’m sure we’ll find her hard at work when we get home.
He tried the door and found it unlocked.
She woke to find a man by her bed.
find somebody/something doing something
Often he found her quietly weeping alone.
find (that)
She looked at her glass and was amazed to find it was empty.
4. DO SOMETHING WITHOUT MEANING TO to be in a particular state or do a particular thing, or to realize that this is happening, especially when you did not expect or intend it:
After wandering around, we found ourselves back at the hotel.
find yourself/your mind etc doing something
When he left, Karen found herself heaving a huge sigh of relief.
She tried to concentrate, but found her mind drifting back to Alex.
find (that)
He found he was shivering.
5. LEARN SOMETHING BY STUDY to discover or learn something by study, tests, sums etc:
The federal government isn’t doing enough to find a cure.
How do you find the square root of 20?
be found to do something
The liquid was found to contain 7.4g of phenylamine.
find that
His study found that married men and women had similar spending patterns.
6. THINK/FEEL to have a particular feeling or opinion, or to have a particular feeling or opinion about someone or something:
Will Gary and Gail find happiness together?
find something/somebody easy/useful/interesting etc
She found the work very dull.
Lots of women I know find him attractive.
I found them quite easy to use.
find it hard/easy/difficult etc (to do something)
Hyperactive children find it difficult to concentrate.
7. EXPERIENCE to have the experience of discovering that something happens or is true
find (that)
You might find that his work improves now he’s at a new school.
I find people are often surprised at how little it costs.
find somebody/something doing something
I think you’ll find more women entering the film business now.
find somebody/something to be something
I found the people to be charming and very friendly.
8. EXIST IN A PLACEbe found somewhere if something is found somewhere, it lives or exists there naturally:
This species is only found in West Africa.
9. GET ENOUGH MONEY/TIME ETC to succeed in getting enough of something, especially money, time, or energy, to be able to do something:
He’s struggling to find the money for the trip.
Where are we going to find the time, the support, and the resources to do all this?
10. IN A COURT OF LAW to make an official decision in a court of law
find somebody guilty/not guilty (of something)
Both men were found guilty of illegally entering the country.
find in sb’s favour
The tribunal found in favour of the defendant.
11. find your way (somewhere) to reach a place by discovering the right way to get there:
Will you be able to find your way back?
12. find its way somewhere informal if something finds its way somewhere, it arrives or gets there after some time:
Her invention has found its way into the shops.
13. find comfort/pleasure/fulfilment etc in something to experience a good feeling because of something:
He eventually found solace in religion.
14. find fault with somebody/something to criticize someone or something, often unfairly and frequently:
He could always find fault with something, either in my writing or in my personality.
15. find it in your heart/yourself to do something literary to feel able or willing to do something:
Seb could not find it in his heart to tell Nahum.
16. find yourself informal to discover what you are really like and what you want to do – often used humorously:
She went to India to find herself.
17. find favour (with somebody/something) formal to be liked or approved of by someone:
The recipes rapidly found favour with restaurant owners.
18. find your feet to become confident in a new situation, especially one that is difficult at first:
Rob is still finding his feet as a coach.
19. find its mark/target
a) if a bullet, ↑arrow etc finds its mark etc, it hits what it is supposed to hit
b) if a remark, criticism etc finds its mark etc, it has the effect that you intended it to have:
She soon saw that her accusation had found its mark.
20. find your voice
a) (also find your tongue) to manage to say something after being too nervous to talk
b) if a writer, musician etc finds their voice, they are able to express their views, ideas, art etc in the way they want to:
a young film-maker who has finally found his voice
21. be found wanting formal to not be good enough:
Their defence was found wanting.
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ find to get or see something that you have been searching for: Have you found your passport yet? | Police later found the car abandoned in a wood.
▪ discover to find something that was hidden or that people did not know about before: A second bomb has been discovered in south London.
▪ locate formal to find the exact position of something: The airline are still trying to locate my luggage. | Online maps make it easy to locate almost any place in the world.
▪ come across something to find something unexpectedly when you are not looking for it: I came across some old letters from my father in my drawer.
▪ stumble on/across something to find something unexpectedly, especially something very important: They may have stumbled across some vital evidence. | Completely by chance we had stumbled on the biggest hit of the year.
▪ trace to find someone or something that has disappeared, especially by a careful process of collecting information: She had given up all hope of tracing her missing daughter.
▪ track somebody/something down to find someone or something that is difficult to find by searching in different places: I’ve been trying to track down a book that’s out of print. | The police managed to track down the killer.
▪ unearth to find something that has been hidden or lost for a long time, by digging or searching for it: In 1796, a carved stone was unearthed near the burial mound.
find against somebody phrasal verb law
to judge that someone is wrong or guilty:
The inspectors are likely to find against the company.
find for somebody phrasal verb law
to judge that someone is right or not guilty:
The judge found for the plaintiff.
find out phrasal verb
1. to get information, after trying to discover it or by chance
find out who/what/how etc
Has anyone bothered to find out how much all this is going to cost?
find out if/whether
Did you find out whether there are any seats left?
find out (that)
I found out that my parents had never been married.
find something ↔ out
To find out more, visit our website.
find out (something) about something
I need to find out more about these night courses.
find out from
We could find out from the local council.
I thought it best to let you find out for yourself.
REGISTER
In written English, people usually say that someone discovers something rather than finds out something:
▪ Scientists soon discovered that this was false.
2. find somebody out [usually passive] if you are found out, someone discovers that you have been doing something dishonest or illegal ⇨ catch:
What happens if we get found out?

exist

ex‧ist S2 W1 /ɪɡˈzɪst/ BrE AmE verb [intransitive not in progressive]
[Word Family: noun: ↑existence ≠ ↑non-existence, ↑existent, ↑existentialism, ↑existentialist, ↑coexistence; adjective: ↑existent ≠ ↑nonexistent, ↑existing, ↑pre-existing, ↑existential, ↑existentialist; verb: ↑exist, ↑coexist]
[Date: 1600-1700; Language: Latin; Origin: exsistere 'to come into being, exist', from sistere 'to stand']
1. to happen or be present in a particular situation or place:
The custom of arranged marriages still exists in many countries.
Opportunities exist for students to gain sponsorship.
Stop pretending that the problem doesn’t exist.
The club will cease to exist if financial help is not found.
2. to be real or alive:
Do fairies really exist?
Tom acts as if I don’t exist at times.
3. to stay alive, especially in a difficult situation when you do not have enough money, food etc SYN survive
exist on
The hostages existed on bread and water.
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ adverbs
▪ really/actually exist Do you think ghosts really exist?
▪ already exist Legislation to protect us from terrorists already exists.
▪ currently exist No treaty currently exists between the two countries.
▪ still exist (=existing in the past and continuing to exist) A number of his early photographs still exist.
■ verbs
▪ continue to exist We all hope the human race will continue to exist for millions of years.
▪ cease to exist (=stop existing) Many of these companies will cease to exist in five years' time.
▪ be known to exist Seven copies of the original book are still known to exist.
■ phrases
▪ the right to exist The president issued a statement recognizing Kosovo's right to exist.

receive

re‧ceive S1 W1 /rɪˈsiːv/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[Word Family: noun: ↑receipt, receipts, ↑receiver, ↑reception, ↑receivership, ↑receiving, ↑receptionist, ↑receptor; adjective: ↑receptive ≠ UNRECEPTIVE, ↑received; verb: ↑receive]
[Date: 1300-1400; Language: Old North French; Origin: receivre, from Latin recipere, from capere 'to take']
1. BE GIVEN SOMETHING to be given something SYN get:
All the children will receive a small gift.
receive something from somebody
She received an honorary degree from Harvard.
receive attention/affection/support
She received no support from her parents.
receive payment/money/a pension etc
They will be entitled to receive unemployment benefit.
receive a prize/award/gift etc
He went up to receive his award from the mayor.
receive education/training
16 to 18-year-olds receiving full-time education
Lee received 324 votes (=324 people voted for him).
REGISTER
Receive is a rather formal word, which is used especially in written English. In everyday English, people usually use get.
▪ What did you get for your birthday?
▪ She got a degree from York University.
2. BE SENT SOMETHING formal to get a letter, message, or telephone call, or something which someone has sent you
receive something from somebody
He received a letter from his insurance company.
If you would like to receive further information, return the attached form.
We have received numerous complaints about the noise.
3. TREATMENT formal if you receive a particular type of medical treatment, it is done to you:
He received hospital treatment for a cut over his eye.
4. REACTION TO SOMETHING [usually passive] to react in a particular way to a suggestion, idea, performance etc ⇨ reception:
The film was well received by critics (=they said it was good).
He received the news in silence.
5. be on/at the receiving end (of something) to be the person who is affected by someone else’s actions, usually in an unpleasant way:
She found herself on the receiving end of racist abuse.
6. receive an injury/blow formal to be injured or hit
7. PEOPLE formal to officially accept someone as a guest or member of a group
receive guests/visitors
She isn’t well enough to receive visitors yet.
receive somebody into something
She was later received into the Church.
8. BY RADIO
a) if a radio or television receives radio waves or other signals, it makes them become sounds or pictures
b) to be able to hear a radio message that someone is sending:
Receiving you loud and clear!'

look

I. look¹ S1 W1 /lʊk/ BrE AmE verb
[Language: Old English; Origin: locian]
1. SEE [intransitive] to turn your eyes towards something, so that you can see it:
We sneaked out while Jessie’s mom wasn’t looking.
If you look carefully you can see that the painting represents a human figure.
Gina covered her eyes, afraid to look.
look at
‘It’s time we left,’ Ian said, looking at his watch.
The men all turned to look at her as she entered the room.
look away/over/down etc
Dad looked up from his paper and smiled.
‘We can’t go out in this weather,’ said Bob, looking out of the window.
2. SEARCH [intransitive] to try to find something:
I looked everywhere but Jimmy was nowhere to be found.
look for
Could you help me look for my contact lens?
If you’re looking for a bargain, try the local market.
look in/under/between etc
Try looking under the bed.
3. SEEM [linking verb] to seem:
From the way things look at the moment, the Republicans are unlikely to win this election.
look good/bad etc
The future’s looking good.
it looks as if/as though/like (=it seems likely that)
It looks as if it might rain later.
It looks like they won’t be needing us any more.
You made me look really stupid in front of all my friends!
4. APPEARANCE [linking verb] to have a particular appearance:
How do I look?
look tired/happy/sad etc
You look tired. You should go to bed.
look as if/as though/like
He looked as if he hadn’t washed for a week.
What did the man look like?
My sister doesn’t look anything like me. ⇨ look like a million dollars at ↑million(4)
5. look daggers at somebody informal to look at someone with a very angry expression on your face
6. look somebody up and down to look at someone carefully from their head to their feet, as if you were forming an opinion about them
7. look somebody in the eye to look directly at someone when you are speaking to them, especially to show that you are not afraid of them or that you are telling the truth:
Owen didn’t dare look his father in the eye.
8. look down your nose at somebody/something to behave as if you think that someone or something is not good enough for you:
He looks down his nose at anyone foreign.
9. look the other way to ignore something bad that is happening and not try to stop it:
Prison guards looked the other way as the man was attacked by fellow prisoners.
10. look no further used to say that something you are offering is exactly what someone has been trying to find:
Want a quiet country retreat for your weekend break? Then look no further!
11. FACE A DIRECTION [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] if a building looks in a particular direction, it faces that direction:
The cabin looks east, so we get the morning sun.
12. look before you leap used to say that it is sensible to think about the possible dangers or difficulties of something before doing it
13. be looking to do something informal to be planning or expecting to do something:
We’re looking to buy a new car early next year.
• • •
SPOKEN PHRASES
14. look
a) used to tell someone to look at something that you think is interesting, surprising etc:
Look! There’s a fox!
b) used to get someone’s attention so that you can suggest something or tell them something:
Look. Why don’t you think about it and give me your answer tomorrow?
Look, I’ve had enough of this. I’m going home.
15. look out! used to warn someone that they are in danger SYN watch out:
Look out! There’s a car coming.
16. look at that! used to tell someone to look at something that you think is interesting, bad etc:
Look at that! What a horrible mess!
17. look who’s here! used when someone arrives unexpectedly:
Well, look who’s here! It’s Jill and Paul!
18. don’t look now used to say that you have seen someone but do not want them to know you have noticed them:
Oh no! Don’t look now but here comes Tony.
19. look what you’re doing/look where you’re going etc used to tell someone to be careful:
Look where you’re putting your feet! There’s mud all over the carpet!
20. look what you’ve done! used to angrily tell someone to look at the result of a mistake they have made or something bad they have done:
Look what you’ve done – my jacket’s ruined!
21. look here old-fashioned used to get someone’s attention in order to tell them something, especially when you are annoyed with them:
Look here, you can’t say things like that to me!
22. (I’m) just looking used when you are in a shop, to say that you are only looking at things, but do not intend to buy anything now:
‘Can I help you?’ ‘No, thanks. I’m just looking.’ ⇨ look kindly on somebody/something at ↑kindly¹(3)
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ look to turn your eyes towards someone or something, so that you can see them: You should never look directly at the sun. | After a while, he turned and looked at me.
▪ have/take a look especially spoken to look at something quickly, especially in order to find or check something: I’ll have a look in my desk. | Take a look at this!
▪ glance to look at someone or something for a short time and then look quickly away: Damien glanced nervously at his watch.
▪ peek/peep (also take a peek/peep) to look quickly at something. Used especially when you are not supposed to look, or when you are looking through a small gap: The door was open so he peeked inside. | Katy peeped at her birthday present on the table.
▪ peer to look very carefully, especially because you cannot see well: Kenji was peering at the screen.
▪ glare to look at someone in an angry way: She glared at me as I got up to leave.
▪ stare to look at someone or something for a long time without moving your eyes: It’s rude to stare. | She stared straight into the camera.
▪ gaze to look at someone or something for a long time, often without realizing that you are doing it: She gazed out of the window. | He lay on his bed gazing at the ceiling.
▪ gape to look at someone or something for a long time, usually with your mouth open, because you are very shocked or surprised: People gaped at him with wide-open mouths.
▪ regard formal to look at someone or something, especially in a particular way: He regarded her steadily.
look after somebody/something phrasal verb especially British English
1. to take care of someone by helping them, giving them what they need, or keeping them safe SYN take care of:
Don’t worry, I’ll look after the kids tomorrow.
Susan looked after us very well. She’s an excellent cook.
You could tell that the horse had been well looked after.
2. to be responsible for dealing with something SYN take care of:
I’m leaving you here to look after the business until I get back.
3. look after yourself especially British English spoken used when you are saying goodbye to someone in a friendly way
4. can look after yourself to not need anyone else to take care of you:
Don’t worry about Maisie – she can look after herself.
look ahead phrasal verb
to think about and plan for what might happen in the future:
Looking ahead, we must expect radical changes to be made in our system of government.
look around (also look round British English) phrasal verb
1. to try to find something
look around for
Jason’s going to start looking around for a new job.
2. look around/round (something) to look at what is in a place such as a building, shop, town etc, especially when you are walking:
Do we have to pay to look around the castle?
Let’s look round the shops.
look at somebody/something phrasal verb
1. to turn your eyes towards someone or something, so that you can see them:
The twins looked at each other and smiled.
2. to read something quickly in order to form an opinion of it:
I really can’t comment on the report – I haven’t had time to look at it yet.
3. to examine something and try to find out what is wrong with it:
You should get the doctor to look at that cut.
Can you look at my car? There’s a strange noise coming from the front wheel.
4. to study and think about something, especially in order to decide what to do:
We need to look very carefully at ways of improving our efficiency.
5. look at somebody/something spoken used to mention someone or something as an example:
You don’t have to be smart to be good at music – look at Gary.
6. to think about something in a particular way SYN see:
I’d like to be friends again, but Richard doesn’t look at it that way.
7. not much to look at informal if someone or something is not much to look at, they are not attractive
look back phrasal verb
1. to think about something that happened in the past
look back on/to
When I look back on those days I realize I was desperately unhappy.
Looking back on it, I still can’t figure out what went wrong.
2. never look back to become more and more successful, especially after a particular success:
After winning the scholarship he never looked back.
look down on something/somebody phrasal verb
to think that you are better than someone else, for example because you are more successful, or of a higher social class than they are:
Mr Garcia looks down on anyone who hasn’t had a college education.
look for somebody/something phrasal verb
1. to try to find something that you have lost, or someone who is not where they should be SYN search for:
I’m looking for Steve – have you seen him?
Detectives are still looking for the escaped prisoner. ⇨ ↑search²(1)
2. be looking for somebody/something to be trying to find a particular kind of thing or person:
I’m sorry, we’re really looking for someone with no family commitments.
be (just) what/who you are looking for
‘Salubrious’! That’s just the word I was looking for.
3. be looking for trouble informal to be behaving in a way that makes it likely that problems or violence will happen:
They walked into a bar looking for trouble.
look forward to something phrasal verb
to be excited and pleased about something that is going to happen:
I’m really looking forward to our vacation.
look forward to doing something
My mother says she’s looking forward to meeting you.
look in phrasal verb informal
to make a short visit to someone, while you are going somewhere else, especially if they are ill or need help SYN drop in, call in
look in on
I promised to look in on Dad and see if he’s feeling any better.
look into something phrasal verb
to try to find out the truth about a problem, crime etc in order to solve it SYN investigate:
Police are looking into the disappearance of two children.
look on phrasal verb
1. to watch something happening, without being involved in it or trying to stop it ⇨ onlooker:
Only one man tried to help us, the rest just looked on in silence.
2. look on somebody/something (also look upon somebody/something) to consider someone or something in a particular way, or as a particular thing
look on as
I look on him as a good friend.
look on with
Strangers to the village are looked upon with a mixture of fear and suspicion.
look something ↔ out phrasal verb
to search for and find a particular thing among your possessions:
I’ll look out some of my old books for you.
look out for somebody/something phrasal verb
1. to pay attention to what is happening around you, so that you will notice a particular person or thing if you see them ⇨ lookout:
Look out for your Aunt while you’re at the station.
He’s looking out for a nice apartment downtown.
2. to try to make sure that someone is treated well:
My older brother always looked out for me when we were kids.
look out for yourself/number one (=think only of the advantages you can get for yourself)
look something/somebody ↔ over phrasal verb
to examine something or someone quickly, without paying much attention to detail:
Do you have a few minutes to look these samples over?
look round phrasal verb British English
to ↑look around
look through somebody/something phrasal verb
1. to look for something among a pile of papers, in a drawer, in someone’s pockets etc SYN go through:
I’ve looked through all my papers but I still can’t find the contract.
2. to not notice or pretend to not notice someone you know, even though you see them
look straight/right through somebody
I saw Fiona in the street yesterday and she looked straight through me.
look to somebody/something phrasal verb
1. to depend on someone to provide help, advice etc
look to somebody/something for
We look to you for support.
look to somebody to do something
They’re looking to the new manager to make the company profitable.
2. to pay attention to something, especially in order to improve it:
We must look to our defences.
look up phrasal verb
1. if a situation is looking up, it is improving SYN improve, get better:
Now the summer’s here things are looking up!
2. look something ↔ up if you look up information in a book, on a computer etc, you try to find it there:
Look the word up in your dictionary.
I’ll just look up the train times.
3. look somebody ↔ up to visit someone you know, especially when you are in the place where they live for a different reason:
Don’t forget to look me up when you come to Atlanta.
look up to somebody phrasal verb
to admire or respect someone:
I’ve always looked up to Bill for his courage and determination.

II. limit² S3 W2 BrE AmE verb
[Word Family: noun: ↑limit, ↑limitation, ↑delimitation; adjective: ↑limited ≠ ↑unlimited, ↑limiting, ↑limitless; verb: ↑limit, ↑delimit]
1. [transitive] to stop an amount or number from increasing beyond a particular point:
a decision to limit imports of foreign cars
limit something to something
Seating is limited to 500.
2. [transitive] to stop someone from doing what they want or from developing and improving beyond a particular point:
A lack of formal education will limit your job opportunities.
limit yourself to something
I limit myself to two cups of coffee a day.
3. be limited to something to exist or happen only in a particular place, group, or area of activity:
The damage was limited to the roof.

drive

I. drive¹ S1 W1 /draɪv/ BrE AmE verb (past tense drove /drəʊv $ droʊv/, past participle driven /ˈdrɪvən/)
[Word Family: noun: ↑drive, ↑driver, ↑driving; verb: ↑drive; adjective: ↑driving]
[Language: Old English; Origin: drifan]
1. VEHICLE
a) [intransitive and transitive] to make a car, truck, bus etc move along
drive to/down/off etc
I am planning to drive to Morocco next year.
the man driving the car
Can you drive?
So when did you learn to drive?
Bye! Drive carefully!
He drives 12 miles to work.
He drives (=has) a BMW estate.
b) [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] if a car, truck etc drives somewhere, it moves there:
After the accident, the other car just drove off.
c) [intransitive] if people drive somewhere, they travel somewhere in a car:
Shall we drive or take the bus?
drive to/down/off etc
They drove back to Woodside.
d) [transitive always + adverb/preposition] to take someone somewhere in a car, truck etc:
She drove Anna to London.
I’ll drive you home.
drive yourself
I drove myself to hospital.
2. MAKE SOMEBODY MOVE [transitive] to force a person or animal to go somewhere:
Torrential rain drove the players off the course.
With a few loud whistles, they drove the donkeys out of the enclosure.
3. MAKE SOMEBODY DO SOMETHING [transitive] to strongly influence someone to do something
drive somebody to do something
The detective wondered what had driven Christine to phone her.
drive somebody to/into something
The noises in my head have nearly driven me to suicide.
Phil, driven by jealousy, started spying on his wife.
4. MAKE SOMEBODY/SOMETHING BE IN A BAD STATE [transitive] to make someone or something get into a bad or extreme state, usually an emotional one
drive somebody crazy/nuts/mad/insane (=make someone feel very annoyed)
This cough is driving me mad!
drive somebody crazy/wild (=make someone feel very sexually excited)
drive somebody up the wall/out of their mind (=make someone feel very annoyed)
drive somebody to distraction/desperation
The mosquitoes drive me to distraction.
drive somebody/something into something
The factory had been driven into bankruptcy.
5. HIT/PUSH SOMETHING INTO SOMETHING [transitive] to hit or push something into something else
drive something into something
We watched Dad drive the posts into the ground.
She drove her heels into the sand.
6. MAKE SOMEBODY WORK [transitive] to make a person or animal work hard
drive yourself
Don’t drive yourself too hard.
7. SPORTS [intransitive and transitive]
a) to move a ball etc forward in a game of baseball, football, golf etc by hitting or kicking it hard and fast:
He drove the ball into the corner of the net.
b) to run with the ball towards the ↑goal in sports such as ↑basketball and American football
8. PROVIDE POWER [transitive] to provide the power for a vehicle or machine
petrol-driven/electrically-driven/battery-driven etc
a petrol-driven lawn mower
9. RAIN/WIND ETC [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] if rain, snow, wind etc drives somewhere, it moves very quickly in that direction:
The rain was driving down hard.
10. drive a coach and horses through something to destroy an argument, plan etc completely:
The new bill will drive a coach and horses through recent trade agreements.
11. MAKE A HOLE [transitive always + adverb/preposition] to make a large hole in something using heavy equipment or machinery:
They drove a tunnel through the mountains.
12. drive something home to make something completely clear to someone:
He didn’t have to drive the point home. The videotape had done that.
13. drive a wedge between somebody to do something that makes people disagree or start to dislike each other:
I don’t want to drive a wedge between you and your father.
⇨ drive/strike a hard bargain at ↑hard¹(18)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 4)
■ phrases
▪ drive somebody crazy/mad/insane spoken (also drive somebody nuts spoken informal) (=make someone feel very annoyed) The continuous noise was driving me crazy.
▪ drive somebody crazy/wild (=make someone feel very sexually excited) He drives women wild.
▪ drive somebody up the wall/round the bend/out of their mind spoken informal (=make someone feel very annoyed) That voice of hers drives me up the wall.
▪ drive somebody to distraction (=make someone feel very upset or annoyed) She was being driven to distraction by her husband’s bad habits.
▪ drive somebody to despair/desperation (=make someone despair) Escalating personal debts have driven many people to despair.
▪ drive somebody to drink (=make someone so annoyed or upset that they depend on alcohol) His problems had almost driven him to drink.
drive at something phrasal verb
what somebody is driving at the thing someone is really trying to say SYN get at:
I still couldn’t understand what Toby was driving at.
drive somebody ↔ away phrasal verb
to behave in a way that makes someone leave:
He was cruel because he wanted to drive me away.
drive something ↔ down phrasal verb
to make prices, costs etc fall quickly:
We have to drive down costs.
drive somebody/something ↔ in phrasal verb
to hit the ball so that another player can score a ↑run in baseball
drive off phrasal verb
1. to hit the ball to begin a game of golf
2. drive somebody ↔ off to force a person or animal to go away from you:
We keep dogs in the yard to drive off intruders.
drive somebody/something ↔ out phrasal verb
1. to force someone or something to leave:
Downtown stores are being driven out by crime.
2. written to make something stop existing:
As we went forward, our fear was driven out by horror.
drive something ↔ up phrasal verb
to make prices, costs etc rise quickly:
The oil shortage drove gas prices up by 20 cents a gallon.

drive

I. drive¹ S1 W1 /draɪv/ BrE AmE verb (past tense drove /drəʊv $ droʊv/, past participle driven /ˈdrɪvən/)
[Word Family: noun: ↑drive, ↑driver, ↑driving; verb: ↑drive; adjective: ↑driving]
[Language: Old English; Origin: drifan]
1. VEHICLE
a) [intransitive and transitive] to make a car, truck, bus etc move along
drive to/down/off etc
I am planning to drive to Morocco next year.
the man driving the car
Can you drive?
So when did you learn to drive?
Bye! Drive carefully!
He drives 12 miles to work.
He drives (=has) a BMW estate.
b) [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] if a car, truck etc drives somewhere, it moves there:
After the accident, the other car just drove off.
c) [intransitive] if people drive somewhere, they travel somewhere in a car:
Shall we drive or take the bus?
drive to/down/off etc
They drove back to Woodside.
d) [transitive always + adverb/preposition] to take someone somewhere in a car, truck etc:
She drove Anna to London.
I’ll drive you home.
drive yourself
I drove myself to hospital.
2. MAKE SOMEBODY MOVE [transitive] to force a person or animal to go somewhere:
Torrential rain drove the players off the course.
With a few loud whistles, they drove the donkeys out of the enclosure.
3. MAKE SOMEBODY DO SOMETHING [transitive] to strongly influence someone to do something
drive somebody to do something
The detective wondered what had driven Christine to phone her.
drive somebody to/into something
The noises in my head have nearly driven me to suicide.
Phil, driven by jealousy, started spying on his wife.
4. MAKE SOMEBODY/SOMETHING BE IN A BAD STATE [transitive] to make someone or something get into a bad or extreme state, usually an emotional one
drive somebody crazy/nuts/mad/insane (=make someone feel very annoyed)
This cough is driving me mad!
drive somebody crazy/wild (=make someone feel very sexually excited)
drive somebody up the wall/out of their mind (=make someone feel very annoyed)
drive somebody to distraction/desperation
The mosquitoes drive me to distraction.
drive somebody/something into something
The factory had been driven into bankruptcy.
5. HIT/PUSH SOMETHING INTO SOMETHING [transitive] to hit or push something into something else
drive something into something
We watched Dad drive the posts into the ground.
She drove her heels into the sand.
6. MAKE SOMEBODY WORK [transitive] to make a person or animal work hard
drive yourself
Don’t drive yourself too hard.
7. SPORTS [intransitive and transitive]
a) to move a ball etc forward in a game of baseball, football, golf etc by hitting or kicking it hard and fast:
He drove the ball into the corner of the net.
b) to run with the ball towards the ↑goal in sports such as ↑basketball and American football
8. PROVIDE POWER [transitive] to provide the power for a vehicle or machine
petrol-driven/electrically-driven/battery-driven etc
a petrol-driven lawn mower
9. RAIN/WIND ETC [intransitive always + adverb/preposition] if rain, snow, wind etc drives somewhere, it moves very quickly in that direction:
The rain was driving down hard.
10. drive a coach and horses through something to destroy an argument, plan etc completely:
The new bill will drive a coach and horses through recent trade agreements.
11. MAKE A HOLE [transitive always + adverb/preposition] to make a large hole in something using heavy equipment or machinery:
They drove a tunnel through the mountains.
12. drive something home to make something completely clear to someone:
He didn’t have to drive the point home. The videotape had done that.
13. drive a wedge between somebody to do something that makes people disagree or start to dislike each other:
I don’t want to drive a wedge between you and your father.
⇨ drive/strike a hard bargain at ↑hard¹(18)
• • •
COLLOCATIONS (for Meaning 4)
■ phrases
▪ drive somebody crazy/mad/insane spoken (also drive somebody nuts spoken informal) (=make someone feel very annoyed) The continuous noise was driving me crazy.
▪ drive somebody crazy/wild (=make someone feel very sexually excited) He drives women wild.
▪ drive somebody up the wall/round the bend/out of their mind spoken informal (=make someone feel very annoyed) That voice of hers drives me up the wall.
▪ drive somebody to distraction (=make someone feel very upset or annoyed) She was being driven to distraction by her husband’s bad habits.
▪ drive somebody to despair/desperation (=make someone despair) Escalating personal debts have driven many people to despair.
▪ drive somebody to drink (=make someone so annoyed or upset that they depend on alcohol) His problems had almost driven him to drink.
drive at something phrasal verb
what somebody is driving at the thing someone is really trying to say SYN get at:
I still couldn’t understand what Toby was driving at.
drive somebody ↔ away phrasal verb
to behave in a way that makes someone leave:
He was cruel because he wanted to drive me away.
drive something ↔ down phrasal verb
to make prices, costs etc fall quickly:
We have to drive down costs.
drive somebody/something ↔ in phrasal verb
to hit the ball so that another player can score a ↑run in baseball
drive off phrasal verb
1. to hit the ball to begin a game of golf
2. drive somebody ↔ off to force a person or animal to go away from you:
We keep dogs in the yard to drive off intruders.
drive somebody/something ↔ out phrasal verb
1. to force someone or something to leave:
Downtown stores are being driven out by crime.
2. written to make something stop existing:
As we went forward, our fear was driven out by horror.
drive something ↔ up phrasal verb
to make prices, costs etc rise quickly:
The oil shortage drove gas prices up by 20 cents a gallon.