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draw

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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WOTD – 15 April 2025

Etymology

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The verb is derived from Middle English drauen, drawen, draȝen, dragen (“to drag, pull; to draw (out); to attract; to entice, lure; to lead; to make a drawing; to move, travel; etc.”),[1] from Old English dragan (“to drag, draw”), from Proto-West Germanic *dragan (“to carry; to haul”), from Proto-Germanic *draganą (“to carry; to pull, draw”); further etymology uncertain, often said to be from Proto-Indo-European *dʰregʰ- (“to pull, draw”), but possibly from a non-Indo-European substrate root which is also the source of Latin trahō (“to pull, draw; etc.”).[2] Doublet of drag and draught.

The noun is derived from Middle English drau, draue (“action of shooting with a bow”),[3] from drauen, drawen (verb).[4]

cognates

Pronunciation

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Verb

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draw (third-person singular simple present draws, present participle drawing, simple past drew, past participle drawn or (colloquial and nonstandard) drew)

  1. Senses relating to exerting force or pulling.
    1. (transitive, often formal) To pull (someone or something) in a particular direction or manner. [from 8th c.]
      He drew a sheaf of papers from his bag.
      • 1918 September–November, Edgar Rice Burroughs, “The Land That Time Forgot”, in The Blue Book Magazine, Chicago, Ill.: Story-press Corp., →OCLC; republished as chapter VIII, in Hugo Gernsback, editor, Amazing Stories, (please specify |part=I to III), New York, N.Y.: Experimenter Publishing, 1927, →OCLC:
        Lys shuddered, and I put my arm around her and drew her to me; and thus we sat throughout the hot night. She told me of her abduction and of the fright she had undergone, and together we thanked God that she had come through unharmed, because the great brute had dared not pause along the danger-infested way.
      • 1943 November – 1944 February (date written; published 1945 August 17), George Orwell [pseudonym; Eric Arthur Blair], Animal Farm […], London: Secker & Warburg, published May 1962, →OCLC:
        At the last moment Mollie, the foolish, pretty white mare who drew Mr. Jones's trap, came mincing daintily in, chewing at a lump of sugar.
    2. (transitive) To move (a body part) in a particular direction. [from 13th c.]
      She settled in the window seat, drawing her leg up beneath her.
    3. (transitive) Often followed by tight: to pull (something, such as a belt or string) so that it tightens or wraps around something more closely. [from 17th c.]
      She took a deep breath and drew her corset-strings.
    4. (transitive) To drag (something), especially along the ground.
      • 1697, William Dampier, A New Voyage Round the World. […], London: […] James Knapton, […], →OCLC:
        Seals […] throw their bodies forward, drawing their hinder-parts after them.
    5. (transitive) To pull (blinds, a curtain, etc.) open or closed. [from 13th c.]
      She drew the curtains to let in the sunlight.
      You should draw the curtains at night for privacy.
      • 1944 November and December, “"Duplex Roomette" Sleeping Cars”, in Railway Magazine, page 324:
        It is realised that the old Pullman standard sleeper, with its convertible "sections", each containing upper and lower berths, and with no greater privacy at night than the curtains drawn along both sides of a middle aisle, has had its day.
    6. (transitive) To pull out (a bolt or latch) to unlock a door, gate, etc.; also, to push in (a bolt or latch) to lock a door, gate, etc.
    7. (transitive) Chiefly followed by aside or to one side: to move (someone) away from a group of people in order to speak to them privately.
    8. (transitive, reflexive) To assume a specific attitude or position, either by pulling in or stretching out one's body or limbs. [from 17th c.]
      He drew himself to his full height and glowered at the interloper.
    9. (transitive, figurative)
      1. To cause (a body part) to contract or shrink; also, to pull (the mouth, the face or features, etc.) out of shape from emotion, etc.; to distort. [from 14th c.]
      2. (archaic) To cause (someone or something) to go from one place to another, or from one condition to another.
      3. (archaic) To construct (a canal, wall, etc.) from one point to another. [from 15th c.]
      4. (billiards) To strike (the cue ball) below the centre so as to give it a backward rotation which causes it to move backwards on striking another ball. [from 19th c.]
      5. (bowls) To cause (a bowl) to move in a curve to a certain place.
      6. (cricket, archaic) Of a batter: to hit (a ball) from the off side to the leg side, especially with an inclined bat; also, to hit (a short-length ball directed at the leg stump) with an inclined bat so as to deflect the ball between the legs and the wicket. [from 19th c.]
      7. (curling) To play (a shot or a stone) that lands in the house (“circular target”). [from 18th c.]
      8. (golf) To hit (the ball) with the toe of the club so that it is deflected toward the left (or, for a left-handed player, toward the right, originally in an uncontrolled and now a controlled manner. [from 19th c.]
        • 2013, Nick Bradley, Kinetic Golf:
          […] the golfer thinks, “Ah! To draw the ball, I must be like the old pros and incorporate hand action through impact, twisting the clubhead to the left.” All you have to do to apply the spin needed to draw the ball left is to create a very small conflict between the clubface aim and the path the clubhead is traveling.
      9. (nautical) Of a vessel: to require (a certain depth of water) to float in. [from 15th c.]
        This ship draws ten feet of water.
    10. (transitive, historical)
      1. To drag (someone) by tying behind a horse or on a frame as a form of punishment or torture, or to bring to a place of execution.
        • 1569, Richard Grafton, “Richarde the Seconde”, in A Chronicle at Large and Meere History of the Affayres of Englande […], volume II, London: […] Henry Denham, […], for Richarde Tottle and Humffrey Toye, →OCLC, page 351:
          And if any manner of perſon attempted to moue the King to infringe any parte of thys ordynaunce, and that being knowne, for the firſt time, he ſhould be depriued of his goodes and poſſeſſions, and for the ſecond time, to be drawen thorough the Citie, and ſo put to execution as an arrant traytor.
      2. To kill someone as a form of punishment or torture by tearing apart (their body) by tying their limbs to horses which run in different directions; also, to tear (the limbs) from someone's body in this manner.
    11. (transitive, archery) To pull back (an arrow or bowstring) in preparation for shooting the arrow; also, to cause (a bow) to bend by pulling back the bowstring. [from 12th c.]
    12. (transitive, arithmetic) To subject (a number) to an arithmetic operation.
    13. (transitive, fishing) to haul in (a fishing net) which has been cast; also, to drag (a fishing net) alongside a boat.
    14. (transitive, nautical, archaic) To hoist (a sail).
    15. (transitive, UK, regional) To carry (a load) in a vehicle; to cart, to haul.
    16. (transitive, obsolete)
      1. To sew together (the edges of a tear); also, to mend (a hole or tear) in fabric.
      2. To use (a draught animal) to pull a plough or vehicle.
      3. (figurative) To attribute (something) to a person or thing; to ascribe.
      4. (figurative) To change (something) into another thing; to convert, to transform.
      5. (figurative) To convert (a passage) from one literary style to another (for example, from prose to verse); or to translate (a text) from one language to another.
      6. (figurative) To direct (one's heart, thoughts, etc.) in a certain way or towards someone or something.
      7. (figurative) To give (courage, strength, etc.) to oneself; to summon up; also, to produce (evil, wickedness, etc.) in oneself.
      8. (figurative) To give (words) a certain meaning, especially one which is distorted; to distort, to misrepresent.
      9. (figurative, cooking) Followed by through: to pass (food) through a strainer.
      10. (figurative, cooking) To mix (an ingredient) with another ingredient or ingredients to form a liquid or paste; to mix (ingredients) together to form a liquid or paste.
    17. (intransitive) To be (able to be) pulled in a particular direction or manner.
    18. (intransitive) Of blinds, a curtain, etc.: to be pulled open or closed.
    19. (intransitive, figurative)
      1. (bowls) Of a bowl: to move in a curve to a certain place.
      2. (curling) To make a shot that lands in the house.
      3. (nautical) Followed by an adverb, such as deep or shallow: of a vessel: to require a depth of water of a certain characteristic to float in.
    20. (intransitive, archaic)
      1. Especially of a draught animal: to pull something, such as a plough or vehicle, along; to have force to move something by pulling. [from 14th c.]
        This horse draws well.
      2. Of a plough or vehicle: to be pulled along in a specified manner. [from 19th c.]
        The carriage draws easily.
      3. To become contracted; to shrink. [from 17th c.]
        • 1627 (indicated as 1626), Francis [Bacon], “(please specify the page, or |century=I to X)”, in Sylua Syluarum: Or A Naturall Historie. In Ten Centuries. […], London: […] William Rawley […]; [p]rinted by J[ohn] H[aviland] for William Lee […], →OCLC:
          water […] will shrink or draw into less room
    21. (intransitive, archery) To pull back an arrow or bowstring in preparation for shooting the arrow; also, to cause a bow to bend by pulling back the bowstring.
    22. (intransitive, Scotland, figurative, archaic) To work together towards a common aim; to cooperate, to pull together; also, to have a good relationship with; to get on with.
    23. (intransitive, obsolete)
      1. To be dragged along; to drag.
      2. To pull at something; to tug.
        • 1913, Robert Barr, chapter 4, in Lord Stranleigh Abroad:
          […] No rogue e'er felt the halter [i.e., the hangman's noose] draw, with a good opinion of the law, and perhaps my own detestation of the law arises from my having frequently broken it.
  2. Senses relating to attracting.
    1. (transitive) To induce (the attention, the eyes or mind, etc.) to be directed at or focused on something. [from 9th c.]
      From the moment she entered the room, all eyes were drawn to her.
      His mind was drawn back to the events of the preceding morning.
      • 1964 April, “Letters: Rethinking emergency procedures”, in Modern Railways, page 274:
        Handsignalmen, where needed, ought to wear a conspicuous orange/yellow cape (like many road workmen) to draw attention to them.
    2. (transitive) To attract or cause (someone) to come to a particular place or to take a particular course of action; also, to cause (someone) to turn away from a particular condition or course of action. [from 12th c.]
      • 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter V, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y., London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC:
        A place like the Right Livers' Rest was bound to draw freaks, same as molasses draws flies.
      • 1935, George Goodchild, chapter 5, in Death on the Centre Court:
        The restaurant was packed, and the promenade between the two main courts and the subsidiary courts was thronged with healthy-looking youngish people, drawn to the Mecca of tennis from all parts of the country.
    3. (transitive) To attract (something) by means of a physical force, especially gravity or magnetism. [from 14th c.]
      • 1627 (indicated as 1626), Francis [Bacon], “(please specify the page, or |century=I to X)”, in Sylua Syluarum: Or A Naturall Historie. In Ten Centuries. […], London: […] William Rawley […]; [p]rinted by J[ohn] H[aviland] for William Lee […], →OCLC:
        These following bodies do not draw: smaragd, achates, corneolus, pearl, jaspis, chalcedonius, alabaster, porphyry, coral, marble, touchstone, haematites, or bloodstone […]
      • 1711 August 7 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison; Richard Steele et al.], “FRIDAY, July 27, 1711”, in The Spectator, number 128; republished in Alexander Chalmers, editor, The Spectator; a New Edition, […], volume II, New York, N.Y.: D[aniel] Appleton & Company, 1853, →OCLC:
        Keep a watch upon the particular bias which nature has fixed in their minds, that it may not draw too much.
        The spelling has been modernized.
    4. (transitive) To attract or provoke (a particular reaction or response) from someone. [from 16th c.]
      The president’s comments have drawn strong criticism from right-wing media outlets.
    5. (transitive) To cause (something) to occur as a consequence; to bring about. [from 14th c.]
      • 2011 July 3, Piers Newbury, “Wimbledon 2011: Novak Djokovic beats Rafael Nadal in final”, in BBC Sport:
        In a desperately tight opening set, the pace and accuracy of the Serbian's groundstrokes began to draw errors from the usually faultless Nadal and earned him the first break point of the day at 5-4.
    6. (transitive) Followed by on or upon: to bring (disaster or misfortune) on oneself.
    7. (transitive) To receive (a particular prison sentence).
    8. (transitive) To take (air, smoke, etc.) into the lungs; to breathe in, to inhale. [from 13th c.]
      I drew a deep breath and wiped my brow.
      • 1910, Emerson Hough, chapter I, in The Purchase Price: Or The Cause of Compromise, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC:
        Serene, smiling, enigmatic, she faced him with no fear whatever showing in her dark eyes. […] She put back a truant curl from her forehead where it had sought egress to the world, and looked him full in the face now, drawing a deep breath which caused the round of her bosom to lift the lace at her throat.
      • 1979, Monty Python, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life:
        So always look on the bright side of death, / Just before you draw your terminal breath.
    9. (transitive) To cause (air) to be sucked into a duct, a room, etc.
    10. (transitive, archaic) To drag or suck deeply on (a cigarette, pipe, or other smoking implement).
    11. (transitive, originally and chiefly military) To attract or provoke gunfire, either intentionally or unintentionally.
    12. (intransitive) To attract or influence a person or group of people; to be an inducement or enticement.
    13. (intransitive) To take a drink of a beverage, especially an alcoholic one; to swig.
    14. (intransitive) Of a duct, smoking implement, etc.: to allow air to be passed through it in order that combustion can occur. [from 18th c.]
      The chimney won’t draw properly if it’s clogged up with soot.
    15. (intransitive) Followed by at or on: to drag or suck deeply on a cigarette, pipe, or other smoking implement.
    16. (intransitive) Chiefly followed by about or around: of a group of people: to come together; to assemble, to congregate, to gather.
  3. Senses relating to extending or protracting.
    1. (transitive) To make (something) larger or longer; to elongate, to stretch. [from 14th c.]
      The dough was run through the pasta machine and drawn into a long ribbon.
    2. (transitive) Followed by out: to flatten (a piece of metal), usually by hammering.
    3. (transitive) To make (wire) by pulling a rod or other piece of metal through one or more apertures; also, to stretch (a rod or other piece of metal) into a wire. [from 13th c.]
      to draw a mass of metal into wire
    4. (transitive) To make (straw straight for thatching by pulling it through the hands.
    5. (transitive, obsolete)
      1. To amount to (a certain quantity or sum).
      2. To extend the duration of (something); to prolong. [10th–19th c.]
      3. To stretch (someone) on a rack as a form of punishment or torture.
    6. (intransitive) To be made larger or longer; to be elongated or stretched.
    7. (intransitive) To make straw straight for thatching by pulling it through the hands.
    8. (intransitive, nautical) Of a sail: to fill with wind and become taut. [from 17th c.]
      The ship’s sail drew when the wind blew strongly.
    9. (intransitive, obsolete)
      1. To amount to a certain quantity or sum.
      2. To extend in area or space; to spread, to stretch.
  4. Senses relating to extracting or selecting.
    1. (transitive) To pull (something) out; to extract, to remove.
      1. To extract (a tooth); to pull. [from 16th c.]
      2. To extract (juice, oil, or some other fluid) from something by osmosis, pressure, or another process. [from 16th c.]
        • 1705, George Cheyne, Philosophical Principles of Religion Natural and Revealed:
          Spirits, by distillations, may be drawn out of vegetable juices, which shall flame and fume of themselves.
      3. To extract (a small amount of liquid, especially blood) by puncturing a surface, or by using a pipette, syringe, or other suction device.
        The cat scratched her, drawing blood.
      4. To leave (tea) temporarily in water to allow the flavour to increase; to infuse, to steep. [from 18th c.]
      5. To pull out (a firearm, sword, or other weapon) from a holster, sheath, etc.; to unsheathe. [from 12th c.]
        They drew their swords and fought each other.
        • 1982, Paul Radley, My Blue-Checker Corker and Me, Sydney: Fontana/Collins, page 16:
          Matthew Garth woulda let Tom Dunstan drill him insteada drawin’ against him.
        • 2024 September 8, HarryBlank, “Next to Nothing”, in SCP Foundation‎[1], archived from the original on 5 October 2024:
          Pensak made an inarticulate shout of surprise, and O stepped away from the sudden precipice so hard that she collided with the back of the elevator, and yelped. Both of them drew their weapons, as they were trained to do when confronted with the unknown, and there was something almost touchingly naïve about that. About drawing down on a featureless void.
      6. To take (a beverage) from a cask or keg using a pump or tap; to tap.
      7. To take up (water) from a well or other source, especially by lifting in a container or pumping. [from 13th c.]
        to draw water from a well using a bucket
      8. To soak up (a liquid, etc.); to absorb; specifically, of an organism (especially a plant) or one of its parts: to take in (nutrients, water, etc.).
      9. Of a channel, drain, etc.: to carry (water) away.
      10. (historical) Chiefly in draw and quarter and hang, draw and quarter: to disembowel (someone), especially after hanging as a punishment for high treason. [from 13th c.]
      11. (cooking) To remove the viscera from (an animal, especially a bird) before cooking.
        • 1709, William King, The Art of Cookery:
          In private draw your poultry, clean your tripe.
      12. (medicine, archaic) To attract (humours, pus, etc.), chiefly by bringing to the surface of the body, so it can be dispersed or removed; also, to treat (a wound) in this way. [from 14th c.]
      13. (mining) To raise (coal or ore) from an underground mine to the surface.
    2. (transitive) To select (one or more things) at random from a collection of similar things to decide which of a group of people will receive something such as a prize, or undergo something such as an assignment; also, to select (someone) by this process; to win (a prize) in a lottery or lucky draw. [from 14th c.]
      The winning lottery numbers were drawn every Tuesday.
      • 1784, Edward Augustus Freeman, An essay on parliamentary representation, and the magistracies of our boroughs royal: […]‎[2]:
        Provided magistracies were filled by men freely chosen or drawn.
      • 1859, Charles Dickens, The Haunted House:
        In the drawing of lots, my sister drew her own room, and I drew Master B.'s.
    3. (transitive) To conduct, or select the winning numbers, tickets, etc., for, (a lottery). [from 16th c.]
    4. (transitive) To remove the contents of (something, especially a kiln or oven); to empty.
    5. (transitive) To fill a bathtub with (water for a bath); to run (a bath). [from 19th c.]
    6. (transitive, archaic)
      1. To withdraw (something); specifically (gambling), to withdraw (a bet or wager); also (horse racing), to withdraw (a horse) from a race. [from 17th c.]
      2. (UK, regional, agriculture, horticulture) Of a plant or its roots: to deplete (soil) of nutrients.
    7. (transitive, agriculture) To separate (sheep) from a flock for a particular purpose, such as breeding or selling.
    8. (transitive, card games) To be dealt or to take (a playing card) from the deck; also, to have (a particular hand) as a result of this. [from 16th c.]
      At the start of their turn, each player must draw a card.
    9. (transitive, fishing) To fish by dragging a fishing net along (a shore) or in (a body of water).
    10. (transitive, hunting) To search (a covert, a wood, etc.) for game or a quarry.
    11. (transitive, sports) To end (a game or match) with neither side winning, that is, in a draw. [from 17th c.]
      I drew my last game against him.
      • 1922, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Chessmen of Mars, HTML edition, The Gutenberg Project, published 2010:
        The game is won when a player places any of his pieces on the same square with his opponent's Princess, or when a Chief takes a Chief. It is drawn when a Chief is taken by any opposing piece other than the opposing Chief; […]
      1. (transitive, cricket) In a match scheduled to last for a certain period of time: to end (a match) with neither side winning because the team batting last has not completed its innings when the playing time concludes.
        Coordinate term: tie
    12. (transitive, manufacturing, historical) To separate (a length of lace made by machine) into sections by removing the threads connecting the sections.
    13. (transitive, northern Scotland) To take milk from (a cow); to milk.
    14. (transitive, obsolete)
      1. (agriculture) To separate (seeds) from the husks of clover or trefoil; also, to separate seeds from the husks of (clover or trefoil).
      2. (cricket, rare) To take (a wicket).
      3. (falconry) To remove (a hawk) from a mew after it has moulted.
      4. (thieves' cant) To steal (something) from a person, especially by picking a pocket; also to pick the pocket of (someone); to steal from (a place).
    15. (analogous) To consume (power).
      The circuit draws three hundred watts.
    16. To obtain, elicit.
      1. To take (something) from a particular source, especially of information; to derive. [from 13th c.]
        He drew comfort from the thought that he was not the first to suffer this way.
        She draws her subject matter from the events of her own life.
        • 2024 August 9, Laura Snapes, “It’s a femininomenon! How Chappell Roan slow-burned her way to stardom”, in The Guardian‎[3]:
          [Chappell] Roan draws from the mega-pop of the 2010s, from Lady Gaga to Taylor Swift – then laces it with sexually frank asides and lavish doses of camp, and performs it with a maximalist, absurd aesthetic indebted to drag, John Waters and Freddie Mercury.
      2. To call forth (something) from a person, to elicit. [from 14th c.]
      3. To deduce or infer (a conclusion); to make (a deduction). [from 16th c.]
        He tried to draw a conclusion from the facts.
      4. To receive (a salary); to withdraw (money) from a bank etc. [from 16th c.]
        to draw money from a bank
      5. To elicit information from (someone); to induce (a person) to speak on some subject. (Now frequently in passive.) [from 19th c.]
        He refused to be drawn on the subject
    17. (intransitive) To pull out a firearm, sword, or other weapon from a holster, sheath, etc.
    18. (intransitive) To take up water from a well or other source, especially by lifting it in a container or pumping it.
    19. (intransitive) To select one or more things at random from a collection of similar things to decide which of a group of people will receive or undergo something.
    20. (intransitive) To leave tea temporarily in water to allow the flavour to increase; to infuse, to steep; also, of a teapot: to cause tea to infuse.
      Tea is much nicer if you let it draw for more than two minutes before pouring.
      • 1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1965, →OCLC, page 207:
        "There's your tay set for you an' drawin' nicely this minute, Miss Ethel," called old Bridget from the hall.
      • 1984, Anita Brookner, Hotel du Lac, Penguin, published 2016, page 119:
        She made a pot of very strong tea, and while she was waiting for it to draw she opened the kitchen door to inspect her garden.
    21. (intransitive) Of a bathtub: to be filled with water for a bath; to be run.
    22. (intransitive) Of a channel, drain, etc.: to carry water away.
    23. (intransitive) Of a liquid: to drain away, to percolate.
    24. (intransitive, medicine, archaic) To treat a wound by attracting humours, pus, etc., chiefly by bringing such material to the surface of the body, so it can be dispersed or removed.
    25. (intransitive, card games) To be dealt or to take a playing card from the deck.
      Jill has four diamonds; she’ll try to draw for a flush.
    26. (intransitive, dominoes) To take a domino from the stock.
    27. (intransitive, sports) To end a game or match with neither side winning, that is, in a draw; to tie.
      We drew the last time we played.
    28. (intransitive, obsolete)
      1. To take alcoholic beverages from casks or kegs in an inn or tavern; to work as a drawer or barman.
      2. (falconry) To remove a hawk from a mew after it has moulted.
  5. Senses relating to moving or travelling.
    1. (reflexive, now rare) To move in a specific direction. [from 12th c.]
      • 1794, Ann Radcliffe, The Mysteries of Udolpho:
        She thought she heard a noise in her chamber, and she drew herself within the casement.
    2. (intransitive, used with prepositions and adverbs) To move steadily in a particular direction or into a specific position. [from 13th c.]
      The runners drew level with each other as they approached the finish line.
      Draw near to the fire and I will tell you a tale.
      The end of the world draws near.
      Heavy clouds drew together above our heads.
    3. To come to, towards (a particular moment in time); to approach (a time). [from 14th c.]
      As it drew towards evening, I packed up and headed for home.
      • 1962 October, “The Victoria Line was only part of the plan”, in Modern Railways, page 258:
        As the war drew to its end, it became evident that repairs and rebuilding in the heavily blitzed Greater London area would be so extensive as to afford opportunity for effective large-scale planning.
    4. (hunting, now rare) To search for game; to track a quarry. [from 16th c.]
  7. Senses relating to depicting or representing.
    1. (transitive) To produce (a figure, line, picture, representation of something, etc.) with a piece of chalk, a crayon, a pen, a pencil, or other instrument. [from 14th c.]
      He had drawn a mural on the wall of his apartment.
      • 1774, [Oliver] Goldsmith, Retaliation: A Poem. […], new (2nd) edition, London: […] G[eorge] Kearsly, […], →OCLC, page 10:
        A flattering painter, vvho made it his care / To dravv men as they ought to be, not as they are.
      • 1718, Mat[thew] Prior, “To Mr. Howard: An Ode”, in Poems on Several Occasions, London: […] Jacob Tonson […], and John Barber […], →OCLC, stanza I, page 70:
        Can I untouch'd the Fair ones Paſſions move? / Or Thou draw Beauty, and not feel it's Pow'r?
      • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter III, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
        Sepia Delft tiles surrounded the fireplace, their crudely drawn Biblical scenes in faded cyclamen blending with the pinkish pine, while above them, instead of a mantelshelf, there was an archway high enough to form a balcony with slender balusters and a tapestry-hung wall behind.
    2. (transitive) To carve or shape (something) by cutting off thin pieces.
    3. (transitive) To make (a comparison or contrast) between two or more things; to compare; to contrast, to distinguish.
    4. (transitive) Often followed by on or upon and the person or institution providing the money: to write (a bill, cheque, or draft) to authorize payment of money.
    5. (transitive) Now chiefly in the form draw up: to compose or write (a piece of text, especially a formal document). [from 14th c.]
      to draw a memorial, a deed, or bill of exchange
    6. (transitive, figurative) To depict (something) linguistically; to portray (something) in words; to describe. [from 14th c.]
      Her first novel contained a host of characters who were richly and convincingly drawn.
    7. (transitive, agriculture) To create (a furrow) by pulling a plough through soil.
    8. (transitive, obsolete)
      1. To arrange or devise (something); to contrive.
      2. To produce (a three-dimensional figure of something); to model, to mould, to sculpt.
    9. (intransitive) To produce an image of something with a piece of chalk, a crayon, a pen, a pencil, or other instrument; to make a drawing or drawings. [from 15th c.]
      When I came in she was drawing on a big piece of coloured paper.

Conjugation

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Conjugation of draw
infinitive (to) draw
present tense past tense
1st-person singular draw drew
2nd-person singular draw, drawest† drew, drewest†
3rd-person singular draws, draweth† drew
plural draw
subjunctive draw drew
imperative draw —
participles drawing drawn

† Archaic or obsolete.

Derived terms

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Translations

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The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Interjection

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draw

  1. (archery) Pull back your bowstring in preparation to shoot.

Noun

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draw (countable and uncountable, plural draws)

  1. That which draws: that which attracts e.g. a crowd.
    • 2007 June 24, Joyce Hor-Chung Lau, “Hong Kong Is Reshaped by Mainlanders”, in The New York Times‎[4], →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2015-06-05, Asia Pacific‎[5]:
      At the mountain’s base is the leafy suburb of Kowloon Tong. It has never been a big tourist draw, but in the decade since territorial control returned to China, this quintessentially Hong Kong neighborhood has had many more visitors — and important changes.
    • 2012, Christoper Zara, Tortured Artists: From Picasso and Monroe to Warhol and Winehouse, the Twisted Secrets of the World's Most Creative Minds, part 1, chapter 1, 27:
      After It, Clara became one of the top box-office draws in Hollywood, but her popularity was short lived.
  2. The act of drawing:
    1. The act of drawing a gun from a holster, etc.
      the Wild West's quick-draw champion
    2. The procedure by which the result of a lottery is determined.
      The draw is on Saturday.
      • 2011 January 29, Chris Bevan, “Torquay 0 - 1 Crawley Town”, in BBC‎[6]:
        Having spent more than £500,000 on players last summer, Crawley can hardly be classed as minnows but they have still punched way above their weight and this kind of performance means no-one will relish pulling them out of the hat in Sunday's draw.
    3. (archery) The act of pulling back the strings in preparation of firing; the distance the strings are pulled back.
      • 2016 August 25, Mike Loades, The Composite Bow, Bloomsbury Publishing, →ISBN, page 21:
        This configuration offered the capacity for an exceptionally long draw – Manchu archers drew all the way back to the point of the right shoulder […]
  3. The result of drawing:
    2. The result of a contest that neither side has won.
      Synonym: tie
      Hyponym: stalemate
      The game ended in a draw.
    3. (cricket) The result of a two-innings match in which at least one side did not complete all their innings before time ran out (as distinguished from a tie).
  4. That which is drawn (e.g. funds from an account).
    They're going to take away our draw! (referring to e.g. disability assistance)
    1. In a commission-based job, an advance on future (potential) commissions given to an employee by the employer.
  5. Draft: flow through a flue of gasses (smoke) resulting from a combustion process, possibly adjustable with a damper.
    • 1981, Stephen King, Do the Dead Sing?:
      She looked in [to the stove] and a tight, dismayed gasp escaped her. She slammed the door shut and adjusted the draw with trembling fingers. For a moment—just a moment—she had seen her old friend Annabelle Frane in the coals.
  6. (sports) The spin or twist imparted to a ball etc. by a drawing stroke.
  7. (golf) A golf shot that (for the right-handed player) curves intentionally to the left. See hook, slice, fade.
  8. (curling) A shot that is intended to land gently in the house (the circular target) without knocking out other stones; cf. takeout.
  10. (geography) A dry stream bed that drains surface water only during periods of heavy rain or flooding.
    • 1918, Willa Cather, My Ántonia, paperback edition, Mirado Modern Classics, page 15:
      The garden, curiously enough, was a quarter of a mile from the house, and the way to it led up a shallow draw past the cattle corral.
  11. (slang, countable) A bag of cannabis.
    • 2011, Yvonne Ellis, Daughter, Arise: A Journey from Devastation to Restoration, page 54:
      So my friends and I would all chip in money to get a bag of weed or a draw.
  12. (slang, uncountable) Cannabis.
    • 2003, “Soap Bar”, in The Manifesto‎[7], performed by Goldie Looking Chain:
      Selling draw to your mates but it's really Oxo cubes.
    • 2017, Michael Coleman, Old Skool Rave, page 139:
      Mick spoke to Simon, who was more of a drinker. He said that people who smoked draw were boring.
  13. (poker) A situation in which one or more players has four cards of the same suit or four out of five necessary cards for a straight and requires a further card to make their flush or straight.
    • 2007, Ryan Wiseman, Earn $30,000 Per Month Playing Online Poker: A Step-By-Step Guide to Single, page 82:
      The player to your left immediately raises you the minimum by clicking the raise button. This action immediately suggests that he's on a draw
  14. (horse racing) The stall from which a horse begins the race.

Synonyms

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  • (the result of a contest in which neither side has won): stalemate
  • (dry stream bed that drains water during periods of heavy precipitation): wash, arroyo, wadi, dry creek

Derived terms

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Translations

[edit]
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

References

[edit]
  1. ^ “drauen, v.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
  2. ^ Compare “draw, v.”, in OED Online Paid subscription required⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, March 2025; “draw, v.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
  3. ^ “drau(e, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
  4. ^ Compare “draw, n.”, in OED Online Paid subscription required⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, March 2025.

Further reading

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Anagrams

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Welsh

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Etymology

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Related to Breton treu, Old Breton dydreu, didreu.

Pronunciation

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Adverb

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draw

  1. there, yonder, beyond
    Synonyms: acw, hwnt
    Mae'n byw ochr draw'r mynydd. ― He/She lives on the other/far side of the mountain.
  2. over
    Dere draw ar ôl y gwaith. ― Come over after work.

Usage notes

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This adverb, originally the a soft-mutated form of traw, is found almost exclusively as unmutatable draw today except in literary contexts where forms such as aspirate-mutated thraw may be encountered.

Derived terms

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Further reading

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  • R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “draw”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
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