Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun One that drifts, especially a person who moves aimlessly from place to place or from job to job.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun One who or that which drifts; specifically, a cask, buoy, float, or other light object, properly labeled and tagged, and allowed to drift freely in the ocean to determine ocean-currents.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun pejorative A person who moves from place to place or job to job.
  • noun nautical A type of lightweight sail used in light winds like a spinnaker.
  • noun automotive A driver that uses driving techniques to modify vehicle traction to cause a vehicle to slide or power slide rather than drive in line with the tires.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a wanderer who has no established residence or visible means of support

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

drift +‎ -er

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word drifter.

Examples

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.