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Anglo-Saxon

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drífan

  • verb
Dictionary links
Wright's OE grammar
§101; §126; §133; §293; §299; §490;
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  • Onstyredan, drifan

    agitabant,

      Wrt. Voc. ii. 3, 39.
to force living beings
to move.
to force men or animals
to move before or from one
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  • Hié mon beforan hiera triumphan drifon,

      Ors. 5, 1; S. 214, 17.

  • Dríf þá sceáp in heora lǽse,

      Gr. D. 20, 12.

  • Se æþeling bebeád þæt hié heora witan him beforan drifen swá swá niédlingas,

      Ors. 3, 8; S. 122, 7.
to cause to flee before one's pursuit, to chase, hunt, pursue
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  • Hé nolde ðane sleán ðe hine dráf . . . Ðá ðá hé ongeán ðone cirde ðe hine dráf

    persequentem non vult ferire . . . Cum contra persequentem substitit,

      Past. 297, 3, 10.

  • Drifan heora hundas swýðe ǽnne haran geond þone brádan feld, Hml. S. 31, 1057. (2 a)

    to follow

    a track :-- Gif mon trode bedrífð forstolenes yrfes . . . mid mearce gecýþe ꝥ man riht drífe . . . Gif mon secge ꝥ man ꝥ trod áwóh drífe,
      Ll. Th. i. 352, 6, 10.

  • Drífan þá menn ꝥ spor oð hit man þám geréfan gecýðe . . . ádrífe hé ꝥ spor út of his scíre,

      236, 21.
to impel matter
by physical force.
to cause something
to move by application of force
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  • Se wind drífeð ðæt wolcn,

      Past. 285, 21.

  • Drífende

    agens (liburnam remorum tractibus trudit,

      Ald. 3, 2), Wrt. Voc. ii. 1, 3.
to force by a blow, thrust, &c.
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  • Genim geoluwne stán and saltstán and pipor . . . and dríf þurh cláð,

      Lch. i. 374, 15.
  • Álege þone man úpweard, dríf ii. stacan æt þám eaxlum, ii. 342, 5.

  • Gif hwá drífe stacan on ǽnigne man

    si quis acus in homine aliquo defixerit,

      Ll. Th. ii. 208, 26.
to carry on vigorously, transact, prosecute, conduct, practise, exercise, do
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  • Mé is láð tó tǽlenne Godes freónd gyf hé Godes riht drífð,

      Hml. A. 13, 9.

  • Sé þe wóh drífð and geswícan nele,

      Wlfst. 283, 13.

  • Wá ðæs mannes sáwle þe þá ungemetlican hleahtras drífð innan cyrcan,

      233, 26.

  • Ðá wíglunga þe gedwǽsmenn drífað,

      Hml. S. 17, 101.

  • Gif man hwæt becýpan scyle . . . warnien þá þe þone ceáp drífað (

    ipsi per quorum manus transigenda sunt

    ),
      R. Ben. 95, 11.

  • Hí náne sprǽce ne drifon bútan ǽfre embe Crístes naman

    they carried on no conversation except ever about Christ's name,

      Hml. S. 23, 530.

  • Man ne mót sprǽce drífan binnan Godes cyrican,

      13, 69.

  • Þám dǽdbétan nis álýfed nǽnige cýpinge tó drífenne (mercaturam aliquam exercere), Ll. Th. ii. 170, 12. III a. to speak often of a matter, bring up, agitate; cf. colloquial to trot out a subject :-- Eówer brocu þe gé ealneg drífað

    your troubles that you are always bringing up,

      Ors. 3, 7; S. 120, 14.
to go through what is painful,
suffer, undergo
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  • Fefer drífende

    febricitans,

      Mk. R. 1, 30.
  • (Cf. drif.) [v. N. E. D. drive,
]
intrans.
To proceed with violence, act impetuously
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  • Þá þe hlystan nellað . . . ac willað forð on wóh and gewill drífan and geswícan nyllað

    those that will not listen . . . but will rush on wrongly and wilfully and will not stop,

      Wlfst. 304, 13.
Similar entries
v. un-urifen.
Entry information
Citation

Bosworth, Joseph. “drífan.” In An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary Online, edited by Thomas Northcote Toller, Christ Sean, and Ondřej Tichy. Prague: Faculty of Arts, Charles University, 2014. https://bosworthtoller.com/42948.

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  • drífan, v.

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