draw

—drawable, adj.

/draw/, v., drew, drawn, drawing, n.

v.t.

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

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

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

4. 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.

5. to compose or create (a picture) in lines.

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

7. to frame or formulate: to draw a distinction.

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

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

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

11. to deduce; infer: to draw a conclusion.

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

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

14. to produce; bring in: The deposits draw interest.

15. to disembowel: to draw a turkey.

16. to drain: to draw a pond.

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

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

19. 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.

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

21. to wrinkle or shrink by contraction.

22. Med. to cause to discharge: to draw an abscess by a poultice.

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

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

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

26. Cards.

a. to take or be dealt (a card or cards) from the pack.

b. 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.

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

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

29. Hunting. to search (a covert) for game.

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

31. Curling. to slide (the stone) gently.

32. to steep (tea) in boiling water.

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

v.i.

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

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

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

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

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

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

40. to shrink or contract (often fol. by up).

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

42. Med.

a. to act as an irritant; cause blisters.

b. to cause blood, pus, or the like to gather at a specific point.

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

44. to leave a contest undecided; tie.

45. Hunting. (of a hound)

a. to search a covert for game.

b. to follow a game animal by its scent.

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

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

48. draw ahead,

a. to gradually pass something moving in the same direction.

b. Naut. (of the wind) to blow from a direction closer to that in which a vessel is moving; haul forward. Cf. veer¹ (def. 2b).

49. draw away,

a. to move or begin to move away: He drew his hand away from the hot stove.

b. to move farther ahead: The lead runner gradually drew away from his competitor.

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

51. draw in,

a. to cause to take part or enter, esp. unwittingly: I heard them debating the point, but I avoided being drawn in.

b. to make a rough sketch of: to draw in a person's figure against the landscape background.

52. draw off, to move back or away.

53. draw on,

a. to come nearer; approach: He sensed winter drawing on.

b. to clothe oneself in: She drew on her cape and gloves.

c. Naut. (of a vessel) to gain on (another vessel).

d. to utilize or make use of, esp. as a source: The biography has drawn heavily on personal interviews.

54. draw oneself up, to assume an erect posture.

55. draw out,

a. to pull out; remove.

b. to prolong; lengthen.

c. to persuade to speak: You'll find she's quite interesting if you take the trouble to draw her out.

d. Naut. (of a vessel) to move away from (sometimes fol. by from): The boat drew out from the wharf.

e. to take (money) from a place of deposit: She drew her money out of the bank and invested it in bonds.

56. draw up,

a. to devise or formulate; draft, esp. in legal form or as a formal proposal: to draw up a will.

b. to put into position; arrange in order or formation: The officer drew up his men.

c. to bring or come to a stop; halt: Their car drew up at the curb.

n.

57. an act of drawing.

58. something that attracts customers, an audience, etc.

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

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

61. drawing (defs. 5, 6).

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

63. 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.

64. Poker.

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

b. See draw poker.

65. Physical Geog.

a. a small, natural drainageway with a shallow bed; gully.

b. the dry bed of a stream.

c. Chiefly Western U.S. a coulee; ravine.

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

67. an amount regularly drawn, as from a drawing account.

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

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

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

71. luck of the draw. See luck (def. 7).

[bef. 900; ME drawen, OE dragan; c. ON draga to draw, G tragen to carry; cf. DRAG]

Syn. 1. tug, tow. 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.

* * *