draw

• 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...
• After It, Clara became one of the top box-office draws in Hollywood, but her popularity was short lived. - 2012, Christoper Zara, Tortured Artists: From Picasso and Monroe to Warhol and Winehouse, the Twisted Secrets of...

• the Wild West's quick-draw champion

1. The act of drawing a gun from a holster, etc.

2. The procedure by which the result of a lottery is determined.

   • The draw is on Saturday.
   • 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...

3. (archery) The act of pulling back the strings in preparation of firing; the distance the strings are pulled back.

   • This configuration offered the capacity for an exceptionally long draw – Manchu archers drew all the way back to the point of the right shoulder[…] - 2016 August 25, Mike Loades, The Composite Bow, Bloomsbury...

• The game ended in a draw.

Synonyms: tie

1. The result of a contest that neither side has won.

2. (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).

• 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.

• 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...

• 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. - 1918, Willa Cather, My Ántonia, paperback edition, Mirado Modern Classics, page 15:

• So my friends and I would all chip in money to get a bag of weed or a draw. - 2011, Yvonne Ellis, Daughter, Arise: A Journey from Devastation to Restoration, page 54:
• I'm twenty-something young with my priorities straight / I need to buy a booze and I need to buy a draw - 2025, “Young”, performed by Little Simz:

• Selling draw to your mates but it's really Oxo cubes. - 2003, “Soap Bar”, in The Manifesto, performed by Goldie Looking Chain:
• Mick spoke to Simon, who was more of a drinker. He said that people who smoked draw were boring. - 2017, Michael Coleman, Old Skool Rave, page 139:

• 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 - 2007, Ryan Wiseman, Earn $30,000 Per Month Playing Online Poker: A...

• He drew a sheaf of papers from his bag.
• 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...
• 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. - 1943 November – 1944 February (date written; published 1945 August 17), George...

Synonyms: tug yank attract draw hale heave lug pull schlep

1. (transitive, often formal) To pull (someone or something) in a particular direction or manner.

2. (transitive) To move (a body part) in a particular direction.

   • 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.

   • She took a deep breath and drew her corset-strings.

4. (transitive) To drag (something), especially along the ground.

   • Seals […] throw their bodies forward, drawing their hinder-parts after them. - 1697, William Dampier, A New Voyage Round the World. […], London: […] James Knapton, […], →OCLC:

   Synonyms: hale haul drag draw lug schlep tug

5. (transitive) To pull (blinds, a curtain, etc.) open or closed.

   • She drew the curtains to let in the sunlight.
   • You should draw the curtains at night for privacy.
   • 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...

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.

   • He drew himself to his full height and glowered at the interloper.

9. (transitive, figurative) 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.

   • How long her face is drawn! - 1613 (date written), William Shakespeare, [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First...

10. (transitive, figurative) (archaic) To cause (someone or something) to go from one place to another, or from one condition to another.

11. (transitive, figurative) (archaic) To construct (a canal, wall, etc.) from one point to another.

    • the huge Offa's dike which he drew from the mouth of Wye to that of Dee - 1874, John Richard Green, A Short History of the English People:

12. (transitive, figurative) (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.

13. (transitive, figurative) (bowls) To cause (a bowl) to move in a curve to a certain place.

14. (transitive, figurative) (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.

15. (transitive, figurative) (curling) To play (a shot or a stone) that lands in the house (“circular target”).

16. (transitive, figurative) (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.

    • […] 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...

17. (transitive, figurative) (nautical) Of a vessel: to require (a certain depth of water) to float in.

    • This ship draws ten feet of water.

18. (transitive, historical) 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.

    • 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,...

19. (transitive, historical) 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.

20. (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.

21. (transitive, arithmetic) To subject (a number) to an arithmetic operation.

22. (transitive, fishing) to haul in (a fishing net) which has been cast; also, to drag (a fishing net) alongside a boat.

23. (transitive, nautical, archaic) To hoist (a sail).

24. (transitive, UK, regional) To carry (a load) in a vehicle; to cart, to haul.

25. (transitive, obsolete) To sew together (the edges of a tear); also, to mend (a hole or tear) in fabric.

26. (transitive, obsolete) To use (a draught animal) to pull a plough or vehicle.

27. (transitive, obsolete) (figurative) To attribute (something) to a person or thing; to ascribe.

    Synonyms: attach impute lay accredit ascribe attribute chalk up to charge draw put down to repose

28. (transitive, obsolete) (figurative) To change (something) into another thing; to convert, to transform.

    Synonyms: shift transfigure convert develop draw evolve metamorphize metamorphose reconvert transfigurate transform transmogrify transmute transume

29. (transitive, obsolete) (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.

30. (transitive, obsolete) (figurative) To direct (one's heart, thoughts, etc.) in a certain way or towards someone or something.

31. (transitive, obsolete) (figurative) To give (courage, strength, etc.) to oneself; to summon up; also, to produce (evil, wickedness, etc.) in oneself.

32. (transitive, obsolete) (figurative) To give (words) a certain meaning, especially one which is distorted; to distort, to misrepresent.

33. (transitive, obsolete) (figurative, cooking) Followed by through: to pass (food) through a strainer.

34. (transitive, obsolete) (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.

35. (intransitive) To be (able to be) pulled in a particular direction or manner.

36. (intransitive) Of blinds, a curtain, etc.: to be pulled open or closed.

37. (intransitive, figurative) (bowls) Of a bowl: to move in a curve to a certain place.

38. (intransitive, figurative) (curling) To make a shot that lands in the house.

39. (intransitive, figurative) (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.

    • Greater hulks draw deep. - c. 1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Troylus and Cressida”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard,...

40. (intransitive, archaic) Especially of a draught animal: to pull something, such as a plough or vehicle, along; to have force to move something by pulling.

    • This horse draws well.

41. (intransitive, archaic) Of a plough or vehicle: to be pulled along in a specified manner.

    • The carriage draws easily.

42. (intransitive, archaic) To become contracted; to shrink.

    • water[…] will shrink or draw into less room - 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: […]...

43. (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.

44. (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.

45. (intransitive, obsolete) To be dragged along; to drag.

46. (intransitive, obsolete) To pull at something; to tug.

    • […] 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. - 1913, Robert Barr, chapter 4,...

• 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.
• Handsignalmen, where needed, ought to wear a conspicuous orange/yellow cape (like many road workmen) to draw attention to them. - 1964 April, “Letters: Rethinking emergency procedures”, in Modern Railways, page 274:

1. (transitive) To induce (the attention, the eyes or mind, etc.) to be directed at or focused on something.

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.

   • A place like the Right Livers' Rest was bound to draw freaks, same as molasses draws flies. - 1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter V, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company,...
   • 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. - 1935,...

   Synonyms: bring convince procure bring round convict draw gain over persuade pimp prevail upon push suade talk around talk over wash with win over

3. (transitive) To attract (something) by means of a physical force, especially gravity or magnetism.

   • These following bodies do not draw: smaragd, achates, corneolus, pearl, jaspis, chalcedonius, alabaster, porphyry, coral, marble, touchstone, haematites, or bloodstone […] - 1627 (indicated as 1626), Francis [Bacon],...
   • Keep a watch upon the particular bias which nature has fixed in their minds, that it may not draw too much. - 1711 August 6 (Gregorian calendar), [Joseph Addison; Richard Steele et al.], “THURSDAY, July 27, 1711”, in...

   Synonyms: pull allure attract draw

4. (transitive) To attract or provoke (a particular reaction or response) from someone.

   • The president’s comments have drawn strong criticism from right-wing media outlets.

   Synonyms: evoke induce rouse abet actuate goose light a fire under send sting bring about cheer draw drive encourage egg on engender excite foment goad grill ignite impel incite inflame

5. (transitive) To cause (something) to occur as a consequence; to bring about.

   • 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. - 2011 July 3, Piers...

   Synonyms: cause effectuate implement produce

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.

   • I drew a deep breath and wiped my brow.
   • 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,...
   • So always look on the bright side of death, / Just before you draw your terminal breath. - 1979, Monty Python, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life:

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.

    • 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.

(transitive) To make (something) larger or longer; to elongate, to stretch.

• The dough was run through the pasta machine and drawn into a long ribbon.