1
2
3
as in pushes
to apply force to (someone or something) so that it moves in front of one
drove the plunger into the opening
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in compels
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure
the corrupt governor was driven out of office
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in activates
to cause to function
machinery driven by waterpower
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in moves
to set or keep in motion
this motor drives the gears, which then turn the shaft
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
7
as in speeds
to proceed or move quickly
the runner drove past the finish line and then came to a dead stop
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in highways
a passage cleared for public vehicular travel
raced our motorcycles along the drive
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in campaigns
a series of activities undertaken to achieve a goal
a fund-raising drive for the school's marching band
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of drives
Bret Scher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
Some of what also drives Honnold is making the world a better place.
—Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 5 Feb. 2026
Guest parking is available for $10 in the Student Center Parking Structure, near Pereira and West Peltason drives.
—Heather McRea, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026
Innovation is a key aspect that drives militaries forward around the globe.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 4 Feb. 2026
While not all offices or remote cultures may support a ‘bring your pet to work day,’ there are some easy ways to create a more pet-friendly culture that drives a sense of belonging and increases organizational reputation.
—Marissa Andrada, Rolling Stone, 4 Feb. 2026
This comes six months after hearing in a national meeting that race coverage drives subscriptions.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 4 Feb. 2026
What drives Simon to take that step, to finally accept and expose his powers?
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Jan. 2026
With prospects of luxury European cars becoming cheaper, Gupta, who drives an Audi A6, is considering buying another high-end vehicle.
—Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026
Elizabeth Marie Himchak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026
But Reaves grew frustrated in the third quarter when a foul wasn’t called on one of his drives.
—Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 10 Feb. 2026
Struggling from distance, the Magic relied on drives to the basket to generate offense early.
—Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 Feb. 2026
Staying hydrated is important, as is getting up every few hours to walk around and stretch your legs on flights or drives that are more than four hours.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 10 Feb. 2026
But amid anecdotal struggles to share the sidewalk, there is a growing movement to slow the robot rollout, including petition drives, residential meetings and rumblings of political pressure to reexamine the pilot program.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2026
Be able to settle down and be better early on in drives.
—Matt Schooley, CBS News, 9 Feb. 2026
The Patriots went three-and-out for the second time in consecutive drives.
—Doug Kyed, Hartford Courant, 9 Feb. 2026
Despite a handful of promising drives, Republicans have a losing record on health care reform over the past two decades.
—Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2026
Verb
Unlike body composition metrics, BMI obscures the true extent of metabolic dysfunction and cannot distinguish between muscle and fat — or between superficial fat and the visceral fat that drives diabetes, heart disease and other chronic conditions.
—Bret Scher, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
Some of what also drives Honnold is making the world a better place.
—Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 5 Feb. 2026
Guest parking is available for $10 in the Student Center Parking Structure, near Pereira and West Peltason drives.
—Heather McRea, Oc Register, 5 Feb. 2026
Innovation is a key aspect that drives militaries forward around the globe.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 4 Feb. 2026
While not all offices or remote cultures may support a ‘bring your pet to work day,’ there are some easy ways to create a more pet-friendly culture that drives a sense of belonging and increases organizational reputation.
—Marissa Andrada, Rolling Stone, 4 Feb. 2026
This comes six months after hearing in a national meeting that race coverage drives subscriptions.
—Todd Spangler, Variety, 4 Feb. 2026
What drives Simon to take that step, to finally accept and expose his powers?
—Sydney Bucksbaum, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Jan. 2026
With prospects of luxury European cars becoming cheaper, Gupta, who drives an Audi A6, is considering buying another high-end vehicle.
—Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 29 Jan. 2026
Noun
Rancho Bernardo Community Church holds food drives for it occasionally.
—Elizabeth Marie Himchak, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026
But Reaves grew frustrated in the third quarter when a foul wasn’t called on one of his drives.
—Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 10 Feb. 2026
Struggling from distance, the Magic relied on drives to the basket to generate offense early.
—Jason Beede, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 Feb. 2026
Staying hydrated is important, as is getting up every few hours to walk around and stretch your legs on flights or drives that are more than four hours.
—Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 10 Feb. 2026
But amid anecdotal struggles to share the sidewalk, there is a growing movement to slow the robot rollout, including petition drives, residential meetings and rumblings of political pressure to reexamine the pilot program.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 9 Feb. 2026
Be able to settle down and be better early on in drives.
—Matt Schooley, CBS News, 9 Feb. 2026
The Patriots went three-and-out for the second time in consecutive drives.
—Doug Kyed, Hartford Courant, 9 Feb. 2026
Despite a handful of promising drives, Republicans have a losing record on health care reform over the past two decades.
—Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drives
Verb
-
Monroe Hammond joined Everyday Health in 2021 and now runs the news desk as an editor.—
Tom Gavin,
EverydayHealth.com,
5 Feb. 2026
-
OpenAI says the new model runs 25% faster than the previous version and achieves state-of-the-art performance while using fewer computing resources.—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The silhouette arrives as Keen scales American Built production in Kentucky and pushes its sustainability targets under Ann Radil, senior director of Keen Effect, who is focused on circular design and measuring the company’s emissions trajectory.—
Maggie Clancy,
Footwear News,
10 Feb. 2026
-
The novel pushes into the realm of the animal, of the mythological, to a landscape that feels ominous and otherworldly even if issues of the Atlantic are somehow also delivered there.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
This same self-centeredness compels his girlfriend (Olivia Thirlby) to move out of their modest apartment without warning.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
26 Jan. 2026
-
North Carolina requires vaccines without enforcement State law compels North Carolina school principals to require that kindergartners get seven vaccinations within 30 days of the start of the school year.—
Caitlin McGlade,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
When damage occurs, whether as a crack, fracture, or microscopic defect, the material senses the disruption and activates an internal repair response.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Sanders’ go-to exercise activates muscles in your core and hips to help prevent the above inefficiencies.—
Sarah Klein,
Outside,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
An annular solar eclipse happens when the moon moves between Earth and the sun, but is too far from Earth to completely cover the sun's disk.—
Daisy Dobrijevic,
Space.com,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Every year from approximately November 22 to December 21, the sun moves through the ninth sign of the zodiac, Sagittarius, symbolized by the Archer.—
Maressa Brown,
InStyle,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Starting with cake mix is a clever shortcut that not only speeds up the baking progress, but yields a cookie with an extra supple texture.—
Alana Al-Hatlani,
Southern Living,
9 Feb. 2026
-
That speeds up the process and allows more patients to be seen in the same amount of time.—
Lisa Eadicicco,
CNN Money,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Immigration enforcement efforts in Oklahoma also have focused heavily on apprehending commercial truckers driving on interstate highways.—
Nuria Martinez-Keel,
Oklahoma Voice,
10 Feb. 2026
-
This would be like adding streets and highways to the city neighborhoods.—
Amber Dance,
Quanta Magazine,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Ghislaine Maxwell’s lawyer, David Oscar Markus, says mounting media campaigns from federal prisons is hardly as simple as buying a ring light and pressing record.—
Andrew Zucker,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Feb. 2026
-
He’s being challenged by Kenya Franklin, a media consultant on political campaigns.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Drives.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drives. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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