draw

[ draw ]

/ drɔ /

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR draw ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object), drew, drawn, draw·ing.

to cause to move in a particular direction by or as if by a pulling force; pull; drag (often followed by along, away, in, out, or off).

to bring, take, or pull out, as from a receptacle or source: to draw water from a well.

to bring toward oneself or itself, as by inherent force or influence; attract: The concert drew a large audience.

to sketch (someone or something) in lines or words; delineate; depict: to draw a vase with charcoal; to draw the comedy's characters with skill.

to compose or create (a picture) in lines.

to mark or lay out; trace: to draw perpendicular lines.

to frame or formulate: to draw a distinction.

to write out in legal form (sometimes followed by up): Draw up the contract.

to inhale or suck in: to draw liquid through a straw.

to derive or use, as from a source: to draw inspiration from Shakespeare.

to deduce; infer: to draw a conclusion.

to get, take, or receive, as from a source: to draw interest on a savings account; to draw a salary of $600 a week.

to withdraw funds from a drawing account, especially against future commissions on sales.

to produce; bring in: The deposits draw interest.

to disembowel: to draw a turkey.

to drain: to draw a pond.

to pull out to full or greater length; make by attenuating; stretch: to draw filaments of molten glass.

to bend (a bow) by pulling back its string in preparation for shooting an arrow.

to choose or to have assigned to one at random, by or as by picking an unseen number, item, etc.: Let's draw straws to see who has to wash the car.

Metalworking. to form or reduce the sectional area of (a wire, tube, etc.) by pulling through a die.

to wrinkle or shrink by contraction.

Medicine/Medical. to cause to discharge: to draw an abscess by a poultice.

to obtain (rations, clothing, equipment, weapons, or ammunition) from an issuing agency, as an army quartermaster.

Nautical. (of a vessel) to need (a specific depth of water) to float: She draws six feet.

to leave (a contest) undecided; finish with neither side winning, as in a tie.

Cards.

to take or be dealt (a card or cards) from the pack.
Bridge. to remove the outstanding cards in (a given suit) by leading that suit: He had to draw spades first in order to make the contract.

Billiards. to cause (a cue ball) to recoil after impact by giving it a backward spin on the stroke.

Northeastern U.S. (chiefly New England ). to haul; cart.

Hunting. to search (a covert) for game.

Cricket. to play (a ball) with a bat held at an angle in order to deflect the ball between the wicket and the legs.

Curling. to slide (the stone) gently.

to steep (tea) in boiling water.

to form or shape (glass) as it comes from the furnace by stretching.

verb (used without object), drew, drawn, draw·ing.

to exert a pulling, moving, or attracting force: A sail draws by being properly trimmed and filled with wind.

to move or pass, especially slowly or continuously, as under a pulling force (often followed by on, off, out, etc.): The day draws near.

to take out a sword, pistol, etc., for action.

to hold a drawing, lottery, or the like: to draw for prizes.

to sketch or to trace figures; create a picture or depict by sketching.

to be skilled in or practice the art of sketching: I can't paint, but I can draw.

to shrink or contract (often followed by up).

to make a demand (usually followed by on or upon): to draw on one's imagination.

Medicine/Medical.

to act as an irritant; cause blisters.
to cause blood, pus, or the like to gather at a specific point.

to produce or permit a draft, as a pipe or flue.

to leave a contest undecided; tie.

Hunting. (of a hound)

to search a covert for game.
to follow a game animal by its scent.

to attract customers, an audience, etc.: Our newspaper advertisement drew very well.

to pull back the string of a bow in preparation for shooting an arrow.

noun

an act of drawing.

something that attracts customers, an audience, etc.

something that is moved by being drawn, as the movable part of a drawbridge.

something that is chosen or drawn at random, as a lot or chance.

drawing(defs 5, 6).

a contest that ends in a tie; an undecided contest.

Also called draw play. Football. a play in which the quarterback fades as if to pass and then hands the ball to a back, usually the fullback, who is running toward the line of scrimmage.

Poker.

a card or cards taken or dealt from the pack.
draw poker.

Physical Geography.

a small, natural drainageway with a shallow bed; gully.
the dry bed of a stream.
Chiefly Western U.S. a coulee; ravine.

the pull necessary to draw a bow to its full extent.

an amount regularly drawn, as from a drawing account.

a fund, as an expense account or credit line, from which money may be withdrawn when needed.

Horology. the tendency of a tooth of an escape wheel to force toward the center of the wheel a pallet engaging with it.

Verb Phrases

draw ahead,

to gradually pass something moving in the same direction.
Nautical. (of the wind) to blow from a direction closer to that in which a vessel is moving; haul forward.Compare veer¹(def 2b).

draw away,

to move or begin to move away: He drew his hand away from the hot stove.
to move farther ahead: The lead runner gradually drew away from his competitor.

draw down, to deplete or be depleted through use or consumption: to draw down crude-oil supplies.

draw in,

to cause to take part or enter, especially unwittingly: I heard them debating the point, but I avoided being drawn in.
to make a rough sketch of: to draw in a person's figure against the landscape background.

draw off, to move back or away.

draw on,

to come nearer; approach: He sensed winter drawing on.
to clothe oneself in: She drew on her cape and gloves.
Nautical. (of a vessel) to gain on (another vessel).
to utilize or make use of, especially as a source: The biography has drawn heavily on personal interviews.

draw out,

to pull out; remove.
to prolong; lengthen.
to persuade to speak: You'll find she's quite interesting if you take the trouble to draw her out.
Nautical. (of a vessel) to move away from (sometimes followed by from): The boat drew out from the wharf.
to take (money) from a place of deposit: She drew her money out of the bank and invested it in bonds.

draw up,

to devise or formulate; draft, especially in legal form or as a formal proposal: to draw up a will.
to put into position; arrange in order or formation: The officer drew up his men.
to bring or come to a stop; halt: Their car drew up at the curb.

Nearby words

drava, drave, dravida, dravidian, dravite, draw, draw a bead on, draw a blank, draw a line between, draw a veil over, draw an inference

Idioms

beat to the draw, to react quicker than an opponent.

draw oneself up, to assume an erect posture.

luck of the draw. luck(def 10).

Origin of draw

before 900; Middle English drawen, Old English dragan; cognate with Old Norse draga to draw, German tragen to carry; cf. drag

SYNONYMS FOR draw

1 tug, tow.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR draw ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

draw·a·ble, adjectivemis·draw, verb, mis·drew, mis·drawn, mis·draw·ing.pre·draw, verb, pre·drew, pre·drawn, pre·draw·ing; nounre·draw, verb re·drew, re·drawn, re·draw·ing, noun

un·draw·a·ble, adjective

Synonym study

1. Draw, drag, haul, pull imply causing movement of an object toward one by exerting force upon it. To draw is to move by a force, in the direction from which the force is exerted: A magnet draws iron to it. To drag is to draw with the force necessary to overcome friction between the object drawn and the surface on which it rests: to drag a sled to the top of a hill. To haul is to transport a heavy object slowly by mechanical force or with sustained effort: to haul a large boat across a portage. To pull is to draw or tug, exerting varying amounts of force according to the effort needed: to pull out an eyelash; to pull fighting dogs apart.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for draw

In Dresden, Germany, anti-Islam rallies each week draw thousands of demonstrators.
Police Hunt for Paris Massacre Suspects|Tracy McNicoll, Christopher Dickey|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Anyone who tries to draw attention to threats instead of quietly burying them is worsening the problem.
Cover-Ups and Concern Trolls: Actually, It's About Ethics in Suicide Journalism|Arthur Chu|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Sting took over the lead role to try to draw an audience, but his thumpingly inspirational score was already the hero of the show.
Hedwig, Hugh & Michael Cera: 12 Powerhouse Theater Performances of 2014|Janice Kaplan|December 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In another year, stories about the strange new face of an A-list actress might draw chortles and cackles.
Renée Zellweger Got a New Face—and Everyone Had An Opinion About It|Kevin O’Keeffe|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Neither officer had “the opportunity to draw their weapons,” according to police reports.
Alleged Cop Killer Ismaaiyl Brinsley Had a Death Wish|M.L. Nestel|December 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In the porch he paused a moment, to draw on his woollen gloves, and button his great coat, and for something besides.
Gifts of Genius|Various
One mile from New Harmony, we were forced to alight from the carriage, as the horses would not draw us up a steep hill.
Travels Through North America, v. 1-2|Berhard Saxe-Weimar Eisenach
No, it was not in her disposition to injure any one, even should it not be likely to draw down danger upon herself.
Tales From the 'Phantasus', etc. of Ludwig Tieck|Ludwig Tieck
The Empress listened to my arguments, but said that we had gone too far now to draw back.
With the Allies to Pekin|George Alfred Henty
This is the way it works: we draw the lines which hold a letter, but leave out the letter.
The Measurement of Intelligence|Lewis Madison Terman

British Dictionary definitions for draw

draw

/ (drɔː) /

verb draws, drawing, drew or drawn

to cause (a person or thing) to move towards or away by pulling

to bring, take, or pull (something) out, as from a drawer, holster, etc

(tr) to extract or pull or take outto draw teeth; to draw a card from a pack

(tr often foll by off) to take (liquid) out of a cask, keg, tank, etc, by means of a tap

(intr) to move, go, or proceed, esp in a specified directionto draw alongside

(tr) to attract or elicitto draw a crowd; draw attention

(tr) to cause to flowto draw blood

to depict or sketch (a form, figure, picture, etc) in lines, as with a pencil or pen, esp without the use of colour; delineate

(tr) to make, formulate, or deriveto draw conclusions, comparisons, parallels

(tr) to write (a legal document) in proper form

(tr sometimes foll by in) to suck or take in (air, liquid, etc)to draw a breath

(intr) to induce or allow a draught to carry off air, smoke, etcthe flue draws well

(tr) to take or receive from a sourceto draw money from the bank

(tr) to earndraw interest

(tr) finance to write out (a bill of exchange or promissory note)to draw a cheque

(tr) to choose at randomto draw lots

(tr) to reduce the diameter of (a wire or metal rod) by pulling it through a die

(tr) to shape (a sheet of metal or glass) by rolling, by pulling it through a die or by stretching

archery to bend (a bow) by pulling the string

to steep (tea) or (of tea) to steep in boiling water

(tr) to disemboweldraw a chicken

(tr) to cause (pus, blood, etc) to discharge from an abscess or wound

(intr) (of two teams, contestants, etc) to finish a game with an equal number of points, goals, etc; tie

(tr) bridge whist to keep leading a suit in order to force out (all outstanding cards)

draw trumps bridge whist to play the trump suit until the opponents have none left

(tr) billiards to cause (the cue ball) to spin back after a direct impact with another ball by applying backspin when making the stroke

(tr) to search (a place) in order to find wild animals, game, etc, for hunting

golf to cause (a golf ball) to move with a controlled right-to-left trajectory or (of a golf ball) to veer gradually from right to left

(tr) curling to deliver (the stone) gently

(tr) nautical (of a vessel) to require (a certain depth) in which to float

draw a blank to get no results from something

draw and quarter to disembowel and dismember (a person) after hanging

draw stumps cricket to close play, as by pulling out the stumps

draw the line See line 1 (def. 51)

draw the short straw See short straw

draw the shot bowls to deliver the bowl in such a way that it approaches the jack

noun

the act of drawing

US a sum of money advanced to finance anticipated expenses

an event, occasion, act, etc, that attracts a large audience

a raffle or lottery

something taken or chosen at random, as a ticket in a raffle or lottery

a contest or game ending in a tie

US and Canadian a small natural drainage way or gully

a defect found in metal castings due to the contraction of the metal on solidification

Derived Forms

drawable, adjective

Word Origin for draw

Old English dragan; related to Old Norse draga; Old Frisian draga, Old Saxon dragan, Old High German tragan to carry

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

Idioms and Phrases with draw

draw

In addition to the idioms beginning with draw

draw a bead on
draw a blank
draw a line between
draw and quarter
draw an inference
draw a veil over
draw away
draw back
draw blood
draw down
draw fire
draw in
drawing board
drawing card
draw in one's horns
draw in the reins
draw on
draw out
draw straws
draw the curtain
draw the line at
draw up

also see:

back to the drawing board
beat to it (the draw)
daggers drawn
luck of the draw
quick on the draw