to get the drift
4
4.5
- phrasal verb
- Informal
:
entender la idea
- After listening to the speaker for a while, I finally get the drift of his argument.
- get the drift, I said
Examples
-
If you turn up often and seem to get the drift of the magazine, you'll be invited to submit.
Blog text (26) -
So now you are beginning to get the drift of my theme.
Fiction book (2000) -
I think I get the drift.
-
Okay, okay, I get the drift.
-
Not that I watch any of those, but you get the drift.
Blog text (9) -
I could go on, but I think you get the drift.
Blog text (10) -
I think you get the drift.
Blog text (25) -
Well, you get the drift.
Blog text (14) -
But I think you're getting the drift of what I am doing here.
-
I guess they figured we'd get the drift.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To know the meaning of something
877
1.1
To understand something after someone explains it
137
2.7
To understand the meaning of something
51
2.7
To understand the main idea of what someone says or does
37
3.2
To understand what someone is saying or what is happening
9
4.3
To understand the meaning of something
3
9.9
To understand something deeply and naturally
Antonyms
How Clear
146
4.1
137
2.7
∞
1.0
- Informal
4
4.5
37
3.9
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase combines 'get' (to comprehend) with 'drift' (the gist), so the meaning 'understand the general point' is directly derivable from its parts. This verb + noun compositional pattern is common and straightforward, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would likely understand the MWE.
Etymology
Get the drift may come from the picture of something that drifts down a river or in the air: you can tell which way it is going even if you do not see every small detail. So, to get the drift of what someone says means you 'understand the main point' even if you miss the tiny details.