driver

[drahy-ver]

noun

1. a person or thing that drives.

2. a person who drives a vehicle; coachman, chauffeur, etc.

3. a person who drives an animal or animals, as a drover or cowboy.

4. Also called number one wood. Golf.,  a club with a wooden head whose face has almost no slope, for hitting long, low drives from the tee.

5. Machinery.

   1. a part that transmits force or motion.

   2. the member of a pair of connected pulleys, gears, etc., that is nearer to the power source.

6. Computers.,  software or hardware that controls the interface between a computer and a peripheral device.

7. Railroads.,  driving wheel.

8. British.,  a locomotive engineer.

9. Audio.

   1. the part of a loudspeaker that transforms the electrical signal into sound.

   2. the entire loudspeaker.

10. Nautical.

    1. a jib-headed spanker sail.

    2. a designation given to one of the masts abaft the mizzen on a sailing vessel having more than three masts, either the fifth or sixth from forward.

driver

/ ˈdraɪvə /

noun

1. a person who drives a vehicle

2. in a position of control

3. a person who drives animals

4. a mechanical component that exerts a force on another to produce motion

5. golf a club, a No. 1 wood, with a large head and deep face for tee shots

6. electronics a circuit whose output provides the input of another circuit

7. computing a computer program that controls a device

8. something that creates and fuels activity, or gives force or impetus

Other Word Forms

• driverless adjective
• nondriver noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of driver¹

First recorded in 1350–1400, driver is from the Middle English word drivere. See drive, -er ¹

Idioms and Phrases

see backseat driver; in the driver's seat.

Example Sentences

He has long reached for Mars—a main driver of SpaceX.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

A UPS driver who showed up when Powell was celebrating the initial news about hosting “SNL” ended up in a selfie with the actor and his family.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

En route, a driver stopped to ask if Williams had heard about a shooting in the area, among the most dangerous in the state’s largest city.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Rocks were piling along the margins of Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, where runoff hindered drivers and forced lane closures.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Police said they were told that the 27-year-old driver of the car had been involved in a collision on the track right before it drove into the fence.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• chauffeur 
• jockey 
• motorist 
• operator 
• trainer