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Glite Dictionary
to drive at

to drive at

9 6.5
Try to suggest something without saying it clearly when speaking or writing
  • phrasal verb
  • Informal
translation icon : dar a entender
  • What are you driving at?

What I'm really driving at is they're just proxies that people use to filter people out.

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Examples

  • You know what I'm driving at.

    Alice Adams (1935)

  • What are you driving at, Dr. Sheppard?

    Gog (1954)

  • That was part of what we were driving at here.

  • Then I got what he was driving at.

    Fiction book (2000)

  • But that is a minor aspect of what the article is really driving at.

    Blog text (20)

  • I see what you're driving at, said Dr. Y.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • "I didn't quite know what she was driving at."

    Fiction book (2002)

  • What I'm really driving at is they're just proxies that people use to filter people out.

    Tom Bilyeu

  • But the point—what I'm driving at—is this ten men business.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • What I'm driving at is that we need to address the budget issues first.

Synonyms

to aim
vsto drive at
304 1.5

To direct remarks or products at a particular group

is used for implying indirectly rather than openly directing toward a target
to hint
vsto drive at
136 2.0

To suggest something in a quiet way without saying it directly

is a longer effort to imply something indirectly in speech or writing
to insinuate
vsto drive at
42 7.8

To suggest something bad about someone without saying it directly

is an indirect suggestion without the unpleasant or sly tone
to take aim at
vsto drive at
18 4.1

Direct attention, effort, or criticism toward a target

is about indirect suggestion rather than openly targeting someone

Antonyms

to speak clearly
7 1.0

Say words so other people can easily understand you

How Direct

to state
∞ 1.6
to drive at
  • Informal
9 6.5
to hint
136 2.0
to insinuate
42 7.8

Surface Forms

drive at infinitive
driving at present participle
drives at third person singular
drove at past
driven at past participle

Morphology

drive + at

The MWE's meaning 'to imply or get at something indirectly' is related to the literal sense of 'drive' as 'aim or direct' toward something, so a learner who knows 'drive' and 'at' can partly infer an intention-to-aim sense. However, the shift from physical aiming to 'suggesting meaning' is metaphorical and not fully predictable without prior exposure, making it only partially transparent (many languages have similar 'aim at'→'imply' mappings, which helps but does not guarantee comprehension).

Etymology

The phrasal verb drive at may come from the picture of a driver moving a horse or car toward a clear target. The drive is the movement and the at points to the target. So when someone 'drives at' something in speech, they are aiming at an idea without saying it clearly, that is, 'to suggest' or 'to imply'.