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Glite Dictionary
to let drive

to let drive

8.2
To shoot something from a gun or bow
  • phrasal verb
  • Archaic
translation icon : disparar
  • At the signal, the archers let drive a volley of arrows toward the enemy lines.

Examples

  • Startled by the noise, he let drive his pistol at the shadow in the doorway.

  • The rebel leader let drive a stone from his sling, striking the guard.

  • He let drive the arrow straight into the target.

  • Don't let drive that bullet too far!

  • At the signal, the archers let drive a volley of arrows toward the enemy lines.

  • Startled by the noise, he let drive his pistol at the shadow in the doorway.

  • The rebel leader let drive a stone from his sling, striking the guard.

Synonyms

to shoot
vsto let drive
  • NSFW
∞ 1.8

Fire a gun at a person or animal to try to kill

focuses on forceful launching rather than the intent to harm
to drive
vsto let drive
458 1.0

To push something into another thing with force

is specific to violent launching from weapons rather than general pushing
to blast
vsto let drive
45 3.5

To hit or shoot something with great force

centres on weapon-based launching rather than sports hits or propulsion
to catapult
vsto let drive
28 5.1

To throw or send something suddenly with great force

involves firing from personal weapons such as guns or bows
to let fly
vsto let drive
3 5.8

Send something suddenly and forcefully, like a rock or angry words

is limited to launching from weapons or projectile tools
to loose off
vsto let drive
  • Informal
8.2

To fire a gun or other weapon

is broader, meaning forceful launch from a weapon or similar device

Antonyms

to hold back
187 3.2

Stop someone or something from moving forward

How Forceful

blast
37 3.3
to fire
∞ 1.0
to let drive
  • Archaic
8.2
launch
589 4.0
to release
∞ 1.8

Surface Forms

let drive infinitive
let drive past
let drive past participle
letting drive present participle
lets drive third person singular

Morphology

let + drive

The meaning 'to shoot or launch forcefully' is compositionally related to 'let' (allow) + 'drive' (propel), so a learner who knows the constituent words can infer a causative/allowing-of-propulsion sense. However, the structure 'let drive' is somewhat archaic/uncommon and the syntax may be unexpected for a B1 learner, so the relation is not fully obvious in all contexts.

Etymology

Let drive comes from old battle scenes with archers and soldiers. The idea is you let go and drive an arrow or bullet out of a bow or gun with a strong push, so the phrase came to mean 'to shoot or launch something forcefully'.