different between point vs drift

English

Pronunciation

• (UK, General American) enPR: point, IPA^(key): /p??nt/
• Rhymes: -??nt

Etymology 1

From Middle English point, from Old French point m (“dot; minute amount”), from Latin p?nctum (“a hole punched in; a point, puncture”), substantive use of p?nctus m, perfect passive participle of pung? (“I prick, punch”); alternatively, from Old French pointe f (“sharp tip”), from Latin p?ncta f (past participle). Displaced native Middle English ord (“point”), from Old English ord (“point”). Doublet of pointe, punctum, punt, and punto.

Noun

point (plural points)

1. A discrete division of something.
   1. An individual element in a larger whole; a particular detail, thought, or quality. [from 13th c.]

   2. A particular moment in an event or occurrence; a juncture. [from 13th c.]

   3. (archaic) Condition, state. [from 13th c.]

   4. A topic of discussion or debate; a proposition. [from 14th c.]

   5. A focus of conversation or consideration; the main idea.

   6. A purpose or objective, which makes something meaningful. [from 14th c.]

   7. (obsolete) The smallest quantity of something; a jot, a whit. [14th-17th c.]
   8. (obsolete) A tiny amount of time; a moment. [14th-17th c.]
      • 1599, John Davies, Nosce Teipsum

        When time's first point begun / Made he all souls.|title=Of the Soule of Man and the Immortalitie Thereof

   9. A specific location or place, seen as a spatial position. [from 14th c.]

   10. (mathematics, sciences) A zero-dimensional mathematical object representing a location in one or more dimensions; something considered to have position but no magnitude or direction. [from 14th c.]
   11. A full stop or other terminal punctuation mark. [from 14th c.]
   12. (music) A dot or mark used to designate certain tones or time. In ancient music, it distinguished or characterized certain tones or styles (points of perfection, of augmentation, etc.). In modern music, it is placed on the right of a note to raise its value, or prolong its time, by one half.
   13. (by extension) A note; a tune.
   14. A distinguishing quality or characteristic. [from 15th c.]

   15. (in the plural, dated) The chief or excellent features.

       the points of a horse

   16. Something tiny, as a pinprick; a very small mark. [from 15th c.]

   17. (now only in phrases) A tenth; formerly also a twelfth. [from 17th c.]

   18. Each of the marks or strokes written above letters, especially in Semitic languages, to indicate vowels, stress etc. [from 17th c.]
   19. (sports, video games, board games) A unit of scoring in a game or competition. [from 18th c.]

   20. (mathematics) A decimal point (now especially when reading decimal fractions aloud). [from 18th c.]

   21. (economics) A unit used to express differences in prices of stocks and shares. [from 19th c.]
   22. (typography) a unit of measure equal to 1/12 of a pica, or approximately 1/72 of an inch (exactly 1/72 of an inch in the digital era). [from 19th c.]
   23. (Britain) An electric power socket. [from 20th c.]
   24. (navigation, nautical) A unit of bearing equal to one thirty-second of a circle, i.e. 11.25°.

   25. (Britain) A unit of measure for rain, equal to 0.254 mm or 0.01 of an inch.
2. A sharp extremity.
   1. The sharp tip of an object. [from 14th c.]

   2. Any projecting extremity of an object. [from 14th c.]
   3. An object which has a sharp or tapering tip. [from 14th c.]

   4. (backgammon) Each of the twelve triangular positions in either table of a backgammon board, on which the stones are played. [from 15th c.]
   5. A peninsula or promontory. [from 15th c.]
   6. The position at the front or vanguard of an advancing force. [from 16th c.]
      1. (by extension) An operational or public leadership position in a risky endeavor.
   7. Each of the main directions on a compass, usually considered to be 32 in number; a direction. [from 16th c.]
   8. (nautical) The difference between two points of the compass.

   9. Pointedness of speech or writing; a penetrating or decisive quality of expression. [from 17th c.]
   10. (rail transport, Britain, in the plural) A railroad switch. [from 19th c.]
   11. (usually in the plural) An area of contrasting colour on an animal, especially a dog; a marking. [from 19th c.]

   12. A tine or snag of an antler.
   13. (fencing) A movement executed with the sabre or foil.

3. (heraldry) One of the several different parts of the escutcheon.
4. (nautical) A short piece of cordage used in reefing sails.
5. (historical) A string or lace used to tie together certain garments.
6. Lace worked by the needle.

7. (US, slang, dated) An item of private information; a hint; a tip; a pointer.
8. The attitude assumed by a pointer dog when he finds game.

9. (falconry) The perpendicular rising of a hawk over the place where its prey has gone into cover.
10. The act of pointing, as of the foot downward in certain dance positions.
11. The gesture of extending the index finger in a direction in order to indicate something.
    • 2005, Marc Marschark, Patricia Elizabeth Spencer, Oxford handbook of deaf studies, language, and education

      […] DCDP children are exposed to more points and gesturelike signs in their linguistic environment […]

12. (medicine, obsolete) A vaccine point.
13. In various sports, a position of a certain player, or, by extension, the player occupying that position.
    1. (cricket) A fielding position square of the wicket on the off side, between gully and cover. [from 19th c.]
    2. (lacrosse, ice hockey) The position of the player of each side who stands a short distance in front of the goalkeeper.
    3. (baseball) The position of the pitcher and catcher.
    4. (hunting) A spot to which a straight run is made; hence, a straight run from point to point; a cross-country run.

Synonyms

• (location or place): location, place, position, spot
• (in geometry): ord
• (particular moment in an event or occurrence): moment, ord, time
• (sharp tip): end, ord, tip
• (arithmetic symbol): spot, decimal point (name of the symbol; not used when reading decimal fractions aloud)
• (opinion): opinion, point of view, view, viewpoint
• (unit of measure of success or failure): mark (in a competition)
• (color of extremities of an animal):

Hyponyms

Derived terms

Related terms

Descendants

• ? Indonesian: poin
• ? Japanese: ???? (pointo)
• ? Korean: ??? (pointeu)

Translations

See also

• Appendix:Collocations of do, have, make, and take for the use of point with these verbs

References

• point on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Etymology 2

From Middle English pointen, poynten, from Old French pointier, pointer, poynter, from Medieval Latin punctare, p?nctu?re, from Latin p?nctum.

Verb

point (third-person singular simple present points, present participle pointing, simple past and past participle pointed)

1. (intransitive) To extend the index finger in the direction of something in order to show where it is or to draw attention to it.
   • Point at the tattered coat and ragged shoe.

2. (intransitive) To draw attention to something or indicate a direction.

3. (intransitive) To face in a particular direction.
4. (transitive, sometimes figuratively) To direct toward an object; to aim.
   • 1853, Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons, Parliamentary Papers (volume 11, page 267)

     Mr. Fitzsimons pointed my attention to an outside car on which was written, "Take warning," or something of that kind, and he pointed that out to me, and drew my attention to it, as a thing likely to intimidate […]

5. To give a point to; to sharpen; to cut, forge, grind, or file to an acute end.

6. (intransitive) To indicate a probability of something.
7. (transitive, intransitive, masonry) To repair mortar.
8. (transitive, masonry) To fill up and finish the joints of (a wall), by introducing additional cement or mortar, and bringing it to a smooth surface.
9. (stone-cutting) To cut, as a surface, with a pointed tool.
10. (transitive) To direct or encourage (someone) in a particular direction.
11. (transitive, mathematics) To separate an integer from a decimal with a decimal point.
12. (transitive) To mark with diacritics.
13. (dated) To supply with punctuation marks; to punctuate.

14. (transitive, computing) To direct the central processing unit to seek information at a certain location in memory.
15. (transitive, Internet) To direct requests sent to a domain name to the IP address corresponding to that domain name.
16. (intransitive, nautical) To sail close to the wind.

17. (intransitive, hunting) To indicate the presence of game by a fixed and steady look, as certain hunting dogs do.
    • 1713, John Gay, The Rural Sports

      He treads with caution, and he points with fear.

18. (medicine, of an abscess) To approximate to the surface; to head.
19. (dated) To give point to (something said or done); to give particular prominence or force to.
    • 1924, EM Forster, A Passage to India, Penguin 2005, p. 85:

      ‘Oh, it is the great defect in our Indian character!’ – and, as if to point his criticism, the lights of the Civil Station appeared on a rise to the right.

Derived terms

Translations

Etymology 3

From Middle English pointen, poynten, by apheresis of apointen, appointen, appoynten. See appoint.

Verb

point (third-person singular simple present points, present participle pointing, simple past and past participle pointed)

1. (obsolete) To appoint.

References

Further reading

• point in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• point in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• Pinto, opt in, opt-in, pinot, pinto, piton, potin

Danish

Etymology

From French point, from Latin p?nctum, the neuter of the participle p?nctus (“pointed”). The Latin word is also borrowed to Danish punkt (“dot”) and punktum (“full stop”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [p?o???]

Noun

point

1. a point (in a game)

Declension

See also

• punkt
• pointe
• pointere

Further reading

• “point” in Den Danske Ordbog

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pw??/
• (Quebec) IPA^(key): [pw????]
• Rhymes: -??
• Homophones: poing, poings, points

Etymology 1

From Middle French poinct (with orthography modified to reflect the Latin etymology), from Old French point, from Latin punctum.

Noun

point m (plural points)

1. point (small mark)
2. (sports, games) point
3. full stop, period (punctuation mark)
4. (knitting) stitch pattern

Derived terms

Descendants

• ? Danish: point
• Norwegian Bokmål: poeng

Adverb

point

1. (literary, dialectal, usually with "ne") not

   Synonym: pas (contemporary French)

Related terms

• appointer
• pointe
• poindre
• poignant
• poinçon

Etymology 2

From Old French point, from Latin punctus.

Verb

point m (feminine singular pointe, masculine plural points, feminine plural pointes)

1. past participle of poindre

Etymology 3

From Latin pungit.

Verb

point

1. third-person singular present indicative of poindre

Anagrams

• piton

Further reading

• “point” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Manx

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Verb

point (verbal noun pointeil, past participle pointit)

1. appoint

Mutation

Norman

Etymology

From Old French point, from Latin punctum.

Noun

point m (plural points)

1. (Jersey) full stop, period (punctuation mark)

Derived terms

• point d'excliamâtion (“exclamation mark”)
• point d'tchestchionn'nie (“question mark”)
• point virgule (“semicolon”)

Old French

Etymology 1

From Latin punctum.

Noun

point m (oblique plural poinz or pointz, nominative singular poinz or pointz, nominative plural point)

1. a sting; a prick
2. moment; time
3. (on a die) dot
4. small amount

Adverb

point

1. a little
2. (with ne) not (indicates negation)

Descendants

• Middle French: poinct
  • French: point

Etymology 2

From Latin punctus.

Verb

point

1. past participle of poindre

Descendants

• Dutch: pointeren
• English: point
• Middle French: poinct
  • French: point
    • Norwegian Bokmål: poeng

Polish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /pw?nt/

Noun

point f pl

1. genitive plural of pointa

Portuguese

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /?põj?.t??(i)/

Noun

point m (plural points)

1. (Brazil, slang) a location where members of a group usually meet

English

Etymology

From Middle English drift, dryft (“act of driving, drove, shower of rain or snow, impulse”), from Old English *drift (“drift”), from Proto-Germanic *driftiz (“drift”), from Proto-Indo-European *d?reyb?- (“to drive, push”). Equivalent to drive +? -th; cognate with North Frisian drift (“drift”), Saterland Frisian Drift (“current, flow, stream, drift”), Dutch drift (“drift, passion, urge”), German Drift (“drift”) and Trift (“drove, pasture”), Swedish drift (“impulse, instinct”), Icelandic drift (“drift, snow-drift”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: dr?ft, IPA^(key): /d??ft/
• Rhymes: -?ft

Noun

drift (countable and uncountable, plural drifts)

1. (physical) Movement; that which moves or is moved.
   1. Anything driven at random.

      • Some log perhaps upon the waters swam, a useless drift.

   2. A mass of matter which has been driven or forced onward together in a body, or thrown together in a heap, etc., especially by wind or water.
      • 1855, Elisha Kent Kane, Arctic explorations: The second Grinnell expedition in search of Sir John Franklin

        We […] got the brig a good bed in the rushing drift [of ice].

      • 2012, David L. Culp, The Layered Garden: Design Lessons for Year-Round Beauty from Brandywine Cottage, Timber Press, page 168:

        Many of these ground-layer plants were placed in naturalistic drifts to make it appear as if they were sowing themselves.

   3. The distance through which a current flows in a given time.
   4. A drove or flock, as of cattle, sheep, birds.
      • 1655, Thomas Fuller, The History of the University of Cambridge since the Conquest

        cattle coming over the bridge (with their great drifts doing much damage to the high ways)

   5. A collection of loose earth and rocks, or boulders, which have been distributed over large portions of the earth's surface, especially in latitudes north of forty degrees, by the retreat of continental glaciers, such as that which buries former river valleys and creates young river valleys.
      • 1867, E. Andrews, "Observations on the Glacial Drift beneath the bed of Lake Michigan," American Journal of Science and Arts, vol. 43, nos. 127-129, page 75:

        It is there seen that at a distance from the valleys of streams, the old glacial drift usually comes to the surface, and often rises into considerable eminences.

   6. Driftwood included in flotsam washed up onto the beach.
   7. (obsolete) A driving; a violent movement.
      • 1332, author unknown, King Alisaunder

        The dragon drew him [self] away with drift of his wings.

   8. Course or direction along which anything is driven; setting.
      • 1589, Richard Hakluyt The Principal Navigations

        Our drift was south.

   9. That which is driven, forced, or urged along.
2. The act or motion of drifting; the force which impels or drives; an overpowering influence or impulse.
   • 1678, Robert South, Prevention of Sin an unvaluable Mercy, sermon preached at Christ-Church, Oxon on November 10, 1678

     A bad man, being under the drift of any passion, will follow the impulse of it till something interpose.

3. A place (a ford) along a river where the water is shallow enough to permit crossing to the opposite side.
4. The tendency of an act, argument, course of conduct, or the like; object aimed at or intended; intention; hence, also, import or meaning of a sentence or discourse; aim.
   • c. early 1700s, Joseph Addison, A Discourse on Ancient and Modern Learning

     He has made the drift of the whole poem a compliment on his country in general.
5. (architecture) The horizontal thrust or pressure of an arch or vault upon the abutments.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Knight to this entry?)

6. (handiwork) A tool.
   1. A slightly tapered tool of steel for enlarging or shaping a hole in metal, by being forced or driven into or through it; a broach.
   2. A tool used to pack down the composition contained in a rocket, or like firework.
   3. A tool used to insert or extract a removable pin made of metal or hardwood, for the purpose of aligning and/or securing two pieces of material together.
7. A deviation from the line of fire, peculiar to oblong projectiles.
8. (uncountable) Minor deviation of audio or video playback from its correct speed.
   • 1975, Broadcast Management/engineering (volume 11)

     Reference sync servo system — permits minimal time-base error, assuring minimum jitter and drift.

9. (uncountable, film) The situation where a performer gradually and unintentionally moves from their proper location within the scene.
   • 1970, Michael Pate, The Film Actor: Acting for Motion Pictures and Television (page 64)

     There is another form of drift when playing in a scene with other actors.

10. (mining) A passage driven or cut between shaft and shaft; a driftway; a small subterranean gallery; an adit or tunnel.
11. (nautical) Movement.
    1. The angle which the line of a ship's motion makes with the meridian, in drifting.
    2. The distance a vessel is carried off from her desired course by the wind, currents, or other causes.
    3. The place in a deep-waisted vessel where the sheer is raised and the rail is cut off, and usually terminated with a scroll, or driftpiece.
    4. The distance between the two blocks of a tackle.
    5. The difference between the size of a bolt and the hole into which it is driven, or between the circumference of a hoop and that of the mast on which it is to be driven.
12. (cricket) A sideways movement of the ball through the air, when bowled by a spin bowler.
13. Slow, cumulative change.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

drift (third-person singular simple present drifts, present participle drifting, simple past and past participle drifted)

1. (intransitive) To move slowly, especially pushed by currents of water, air, etc.
2. (intransitive) To move haphazardly without any destination.

3. (intransitive) To deviate gently from the intended direction of travel.
4. (transitive) To drive or carry, as currents do a floating body.
   • 1865-1866, John Henry Newman, Apologia Pro Vita Sua

     I was drifted back first to the ante - Nicene history , and then to the Church of Alexandria

5. (transitive) To drive into heaps.

6. (intransitive) To accumulate in heaps by the force of wind; to be driven into heaps.

7. (mining, US) To make a drift; to examine a vein or ledge for the purpose of ascertaining the presence of metals or ores; to follow a vein; to prospect.
8. (transitive, engineering) To enlarge or shape, as a hole, with a drift.
9. (automotive) To oversteer a vehicle, causing loss of traction, while maintaining control from entry to exit of a corner. See Drifting (motorsport).

Derived terms

Translations

Danish

Etymology

From Old Norse drift, from Proto-Germanic *driftiz, cognate with Swedish drift, English drift, German Trift, Dutch drift. Derived form the verb *dr?ban? (“to drive”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dreft/, [?d??æfd?]

Noun

drift c (singular definite driften, plural indefinite drifter)

1. (uncountable) operation, running (of a company, a service or a mashine)
2. (uncountable) service (of public transport)
3. (psychology) drive, urge, desire
4. (uncountable) drift (slow movement in the water or the air)
5. drove (driven animals)

Derived terms

References

• “drift” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Etymology

From Middle Dutch drift, also dricht, from Old Dutch *drift, from Proto-West Germanic *drifti, from Proto-Germanic *driftiz.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dr?ft/
• Hyphenation: drift
• Rhymes: -?ft

Noun

drift f (plural driften)

1. passion
2. strong and sudden upwelling of anger: a fit
3. urge, strong desire
4. violent tendency
5. flock (of sheep or oxen)
6. deviation of direction caused by wind: drift
7. path along which cattle are driven

Derived terms

• driftig
• geestdriftig
• aandrift
• geestdrift
• sneeuwdrift
• driftbui
• driftkikker
• driftsneeuw

Descendants

• Afrikaans: drif

Icelandic

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tr?ft/

Noun

drift f (genitive singular driftar, nominative plural driftir)

1. snowdrift

Declension

Synonyms

• drífa

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From Old Norse drift

Noun

drift f or m (definite singular drifta or driften, indefinite plural drifter, definite plural driftene)

1. operation (av / of)

Derived terms

References

• “drift” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From Old Norse drift

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /dr?ft/

Noun

drift f (definite singular drifta, indefinite plural drifter, definite plural driftene)

1. operation (av / of)
2. drift (being carred by currents)
3. drive (motivation)

Derived terms

• driftskostnad
• driftsmessig
• firehjulsdrift
• gruvedrift

References

• “drift” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

Swedish

Etymology

From Old Norse dript, from Proto-Germanic *driftiz.

Noun

drift c

1. urge, instinct
2. operation, management (singular only)

Declension