Advertisement

Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

Origin and history of driven

driven(adj.)

1570s, of snow, "carried and gathered in heaps by the wind," past-participle adjective from drive (v.). Meaning "motivated" is by 1972.

also from 1570s

Entries linking to driven

drive(v.)

Old English drifan "to compel or urge to move, impel in some direction or manner; to hunt (deer), pursue; to rush against" (class I strong verb; past tense draf, past participle drifen), from Proto-Germanic *dreibanan (source also of Old Frisian driva "I lead, impel, drive (away)," Old Saxon driban, Dutch drijven, Old High German triban, German treiben, Old Norse drifa, Gothic dreiban "to drive"), perhaps from PIE root *dhreibh- "to drive, push," but it may be a Germanic isolated word.

Used in Old English of nails, ships, plows, vehicles, cattle; in Middle English of bargains. Meaning "compel or incite to action or condition of any kind" (drive mad) is by late 12c. Sense of "work with energy, labor actively" is c. 1200; that of "aim a blow" is by early 14c.. Transitive meaning "convey (someone) in a carriage," later an automobile, is from 1660s. The original sense of "pushing from behind" was altered in Modern English by application to automobiles. Related: Driving.

MILLER: "The more you drive, the less intelligent you are." ["Repo Man," 1984]
    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trends of driven

    adapted from books.google.com/ngrams/ with a 7-year moving average; ngrams are probably unreliable.

    More to explore

    compulsive
    c. 1600, "exercising compulsion, tending to compel," from French compulsif, from Latin compulsus, past participle of compellere "to drive together, force," from com "with, together" (see com-) + pellere "to drive" (from PIE root *pel- (5) "to thrust, strike, drive"). Psychologica
    turbine
    1838, "waterwheel driven by the impact or reaction of a flowing stream of water," from French turbine (19c.), from Latin...Originally applied to a wheel spinning on a vertical axis driven by falling water, later of mechanisms driven by the flow...
    drift
    early 14c., literally "a being driven" (at first of snow, rain, etc.); not recorded in Old English, it is either a suffixed..."A being driven," hence "anything driven," especially a number of things or a heap of matter driven or moving together (mid...
    steam-roller
    also steamroller, "heavy motor-driven vehicle with wide wheels for crushing down and leveling roads," 1866, from steam (n...The original ones were steam-driven and debuted in Paris c. 1865....
    rack
    [clouds driven before the wind], c. 1300, rak, "movement, rapid movement," also "rush of wind, collision, crash," originally...unrecorded Scandinavian cognate of it), reinforced by Old Norse rek, *rak "wreckage, jetsam," or Old English wræc "something driven...
    redound
    abound, multiply, increase" (senses now obsolete), also "to flow or go back" (to a place or person), "be sent, rolled, or driven...
    sleet
    In U.S. especially fine pellets of snow mingled with rain, usually wind-driven....
    fight
    Old English feohtan "to combat, contend with weapons, strive; attack; gain by fighting, win" (intransitive; class III strong verb; past tense feaht, past participle fohten), from Proto-Germanic *fe(u)hta (source also of Old High German fehtan, German fechten, Middle Dutch and Dut
    name
    "word by which a person or thing is denoted," Old English nama, noma "name, reputation," from Proto-Germanic *naman- (source also of Old Saxon namo, Old Frisian nama, Old High German namo, German Name, Middle Dutch name, Dutch naam, Old Norse nafn, Gothic namo "name"), from PIE r
    mane
    "growth of long hair on the back of the neck and shoulders," characteristic of the horse, lion, and some other animals, Old English manu "mane of a horse," from Proto-Germanic *mano (source also of Old Norse mön, Old Frisian mana, Middle Dutch mane, Dutch manen, Old High German m

    Share driven

    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Trending
    Dictionary entries near driven
    Advertisement

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.

    Want to remove ads? Log in to see fewer ads, and become a Premium Member to remove all ads.