核心畫面
You can picture 'drift' as something floating on water or in the air, carried slowly along by the current or the wind — not by its own power, and with no one steering. Nearly every other use keeps that feeling: a slow, gentle, unsteered movement that just happens, whether it's a boat, a person's life, a price, or the snow piling up.
可以想成一樣東西浮在水上或飄在空中，被水流或風『緩緩帶著走』——不是靠自己的力量，也沒有人在掌舵。幾乎所有其他用法都…更多收起
可以想成一樣東西浮在水上或飄在空中，被水流或風『緩緩帶著走』——不是靠自己的力量，也沒有人在掌舵。幾乎所有其他用法都還留著這個感覺：一種慢慢的、不出力的、沒人操控的移動，自然而然就發生了，不管漂的是一艘船、一個人的人生、一個價格，還是被風吹積起來的雪。原始詞典資料44 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
driftnoun/dɹɪft/
- 1
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- Some log perhaps upon the waters swam, a useless drift.
- 2
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- a drift of snow, of ice, of sand, of plants, etc.
- Drifts of rising dust involve the sky.
- 3
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- 4
agriculturebusinesslifestyleMovement; that which moves or is moved.
- cattle coming over the bridge (with their great drifts doing much damage to the high ways)
- ...traveling slowly, like a drift of horses
- 5
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- A drift of geese rose over the bank.
- a drift of ducks waddled in panic from her bare feet
- 6
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- It is there seen that at a distance from the valleys of streams, the old glacial drift usually comes to the surface, and often rises into considerable eminences.
- 7
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- 8
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
另外 27 個記錄的用法
- 9
obsoleteMovement; that which moves or is moved.
- The dragon drew him [self] away with drift of his wings.
- 10
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- Our drift was south.
- 11
Movement; that which moves or is moved.
- The desert storm was riding in its strength; the travellers lay beneath the mastery of the fell simoom.[…]Drifts of yellow vapour, fiery, parching, stinging, filled the air.
- 12
The act or motion of drifting; the force which impels or drives; an overpowering influence or impulse.
- A bad man, being under the drift of any passion, will follow the impulse of it till something interpose.
- 13
A place (a ford) along a river where the water is shallow enough to permit crossing to the opposite side.
- 14
The tendency of an act, argument, course of conduct, or the like; object aimed at or intended; intention; hence, also, import or meaning of a sentence or discourse; aim.
- The Gods defenders of the innocent, Will neuer proſper your intended driftes, That thus oppreſſe poore friendles paſſengers.
- c. early 1700s, Joseph Addison, A Discourse on Ancient and Modern Learning He has made the drift of the whole poem a compliment on his country in general.
- 15
architectureThe horizontal thrust or pressure of an arch or vault upon the abutments.
- 16
A tool.
- 17
A tool.
- 18
A tool.
- 19
A deviation from the line of fire, peculiar to obloid projectiles.
- 20
Minor deviation of audio or video playback from its correct speed.
- Reference sync servo system — permits minimal time-base error, assuring minimum jitter and drift.
- 21
broadcastingfilmmediaThe situation where a performer gradually and unintentionally moves from their proper location within the scene.
- There is another form of drift when playing in a scene with other actors.
- 22
businessminingA passage driven or cut between shaft and shaft; a driftway; a small subterranean gallery.
- 23
businessminingAn adit or tunnel driven forward for purposes of exploration or exploitation; generally eventually to a dead end.
- 24
businessminingA sloping winze or road to the surface, for purposes of haulage.
- 25
businessminingIn a coal mine, a heading driven for exploration or ventilation.
- 26
businessminingOf a boring or a driven tunnel: deviation from the intended course.
- 27
businessminingA heading driven through a seam of coal.
- 28
nauticaltransportMovement.
- 29
nauticaltransportMovement.
- 30
nauticaltransportMovement.
- 31
nauticaltransportMovement.
- 32
nauticaltransportMovement.
- 33
ball-gamescricketgamesA sideways movement of the ball through the air, when bowled by a spin bowler.
- 34
Slow, cumulative change.
- genetic drift
- 35
In the New Forest National Park, UK, the bi-annual round-up of wild ponies in order to sell them.
driftverb/dɹɪft/
- 1
To move slowly, especially pushed by currents of water, air, etc.
- The boat drifted away from the shore.
- The balloon was drifting in the breeze.
- 2
To move haphazardly without any destination.
- He drifted from town to town, never settling down.
- 3
To deviate gently from the intended direction of travel.
- This car tends to drift left at high speeds.
- Midway through the half, Argentine Tevez did begin to drift inside in order to exert his influence but by this stage Mick McCarthy's side had gone 1-0 up and looked comfortable.
- 4
To drive or carry, as currents do a floating body.
- 1865-1866, John Henry Newman, Apologia Pro Vita Sua I was drifted back first to the ante - Nicene history , and then to the Church of Alexandria
- 5
To drive into heaps.
- A current of wind drifts snow or sand
- 6
To accumulate in heaps by the force of wind; to be driven into heaps.
- Snow or sand drifts.
- 7
businessminingTo make a drift; to examine a vein or ledge for the purpose of ascertaining the presence of metals or ores; to follow a vein; to prospect.
- 8
engineeringnatural-sciencesphysical-sciencesTo enlarge or shape, as a hole, with a drift.
另外 1 個記錄的用法
- 9
automotivetransportvehiclesTo oversteer a vehicle, causing loss of traction, while maintaining control from entry to exit of a corner. See Drifting (motorsport).
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。