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Glite Dictionary
🧹 To gather leaves 🧹 A yard tool 👀 To scan quickly 🔍 To search through 🤏 To scratch lightly 🎩 An immoral man 🌄 To sweep across 📐 A slope angle
to rake

to rake

2 7.4
To sweep light or gunfire across an area to cover its length
  • verb
  • /reɪk/
translation icon : barrer
  • A flashlight beam rakes the camera.
  • raked by gunfire
  • raked by bullets
  • raked by guns

And ISIS from their perch, from the high ground, just raked them all with machine guns and killed all of them.

Examples

  • The wheelhouse is raked by gunfire.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • The machine guns will continue to rake the area for 60 seconds.

    The Young Lions (1958)

  • Suddenly, bullets rake across the instrument panel.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Bullets rake the walls behind them as they sprint forward.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • FRISCO BAR AND CASINO - NIGHT: Bullets rake the trolley's metal sides.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • The Confederates raked them with heavy fire from their repeaters.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • The Germans raked the wharf with machine gunfire.

    Edge of Darkness (1943)

  • The strobing gunfire makes a strobing shadow of the gunman, whose back is to us as he rakes the room with fire.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • The soldiers raked the enemy positions with gunfire, ensuring no one could escape.

  • As the helicopter flew overhead, it raked the ground with bullets, leaving destruction in its wake.

Synonyms

to sweep
vsto rake
127 2.3

To extend across a large area or long distance

moves in a narrow line to cover entire length
to mow a swath
vsto rake
  • US
7.9

To cut a path through tall grass and plants with a scythe or mower

passes along a narrow line to cover an object's full length

Antonyms

to miss
∞ 1.0

To fail to reach or hit something you aim for

Idioms

to rake over the coals
  • Informal
4 7.9

Scold someone very strongly for a mistake

to rake in a fortune
  • Informal
1 4.3

To earn a lot of money quickly with little work

to rake over old coals
  • Informal
8.4

To bring up old arguments or painful memories again

to step on a rake
  • Informal
8.6

To have unexpected problems because of your own mistake

Phrasal Verbs

to rake in
  • Informal
29 4.6

To earn a large amount of money with little effort

to rake the leaves
1 1.3

To gather fallen leaves from the ground using a long-handled tool

to rake up
  • Informal
1 6.8

Bring up old unpleasant events or arguments in public unnecessarily

to rake off
  • NSFW
1 9.1

Take money secretly from payments, often in an illegal way

to rake over the past
  • Informal
7.1

To keep talking about old mistakes or bad events unnecessarily

to rake over
  • Informal
7.1

Carefully examine and discuss a topic, often when it is difficult or unpleasant

to rake together
  • Informal
6.7

Gather money, papers, or people quickly, often with effort

to rake up old memories
  • Informal
6.8

Remember past events on purpose, often ones you would rather forget

Compounds

garden rake
1 1.7

A tool with a long handle and a bar with teeth for gathering leaves or smoothing soil

croupier's rake
  • Jargon
9.9

A small tool a casino dealer uses to move and collect chips on the table

fine-toothed rake
4.9

A garden tool with many close teeth for gathering leaves and small debris

rake handle
2.5

A long stick used to hold a garden tool for moving leaves

rake-off
  • Literature
8.9

A small secret share taken from money or profits by dishonest people

How Complete

to saturate
55 5.2
to cover
∞ 1.0
to rake
2 7.4
sweep
165 3.5
to brush
133 1.6

Surface Forms

rake infinitive
raked past
raked past participle
raking present participle
rakes third person singular

Etymology

Rake (verb: sweep with fire or light) uses the idea of a wide, sweeping motion, like dragging a tool along a surface so every part is hit, which is why gunfire or beams can 'rake' across a field or room.