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View synonyms for drifter

drifter

[ drif-ter ]

noun

  1. a person or thing that drifts.
  2. a person who goes from place to place, job to job, etc., remaining in each for a short period.
  3. Also called drift boat. a boat used in fishing with a drift net.


drifter

/ ˈdrɪftə /

noun

  1. a person or thing that drifts
  2. a person who moves aimlessly from place to place, usually without a regular job
  3. a boat used for drift-net fishing
  4. nautical a large jib of thin material used in light breezes
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Word History and Origins

Origin of drifter1

First recorded in 1860–65; drift + -er 1
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Example Sentences

Kaestel, then a drifter with a criminal record, was 29 years old.

Professor Kummel was not a drifter and when I had to write papers in his class, I had to swallow my beliefs and write what he wanted to hear.

He had invited a 19-year-old drifter named Arnold Murray to his house and they had had consensual sex.

A May 2014 Slate article by Sam Kean details the tragic changes he suffered “from a virtuous foreman to a sociopathic drifter.”

We used to call ourselves Drifter 873, Skull 7326, the 207th Commandos.

His friends describe him as a “lovable drifter” and a “clearly passionate individual.”

Still living in Australia, he had become a drifter, unable to hold down a job.

Im going to begin right now, too; Ill show Mother that I am not a gilt-edge drifter.

On the night in question our drifter patrol in the Straits of Otranto was attacked by a force of Austrian light cruisers.

He was half owner of a fine drifter and skipper as well, to say nothing of having designed the boat.

The buildings, evidently, belonged to the Double A ranch, and the country was all the Drifter had claimed for it.

She was then told off with another drifter to anchor in the vicinity of the Shipwash to work the hydrophones during the night.

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