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draught

 - 10 dictionary results

draught

   [draft, drahft]
–noun
1.
draughts, (used with a singular verb) British. the game of checkers.
2.
Chiefly British. draft (defs. 1, 3–10, 18–25, 38).
–verb (used with object)
3.
Chiefly British. draft (defs. 28–32).
–verb (used without object)
4.
Chiefly British. draft (def. 33).
–adjective
5.
Chiefly British. draft (defs. 35–37).
Use draught in a Sentence
Origin:
1150–1200; ME draht (c. D dracht, G Tracht, ON drāttr); akin to OE dragan to draw, drōht a pull (at the oars)

—Related forms
draughter, noun
un·der·draught, noun

—Can be confused: draft, draught, draughts, drought (see pronunciation note at this entry).

—Pronunciation note
Draught is a variant spelling of draft and is normally pronounced the same way, as  [draft] or  [drahft] or with a vowel somewhere between  [a] and  [ah]. A pronunciation  [drawt] is sometimes heard for draught, perhaps because -aught is frequently pronounced  [-awt] elsewhere, as in caught and taught.

draft

   [draft, drahft]
–noun
1.
a drawing, sketch, or design.
2.
a first or preliminary form of any writing, subject to revision, copying, etc.
3.
act of drawing; delineation.
4.
a current of air in any enclosed space, esp. in a room, chimney, or stove.
5.
a current of air moving in an upward or downward direction.
6.
a device for regulating the current of air in a stove, fireplace, etc.
7.
an act of drawing or pulling loads.
8.
something that is drawn or pulled; a haul.
9.
an animal or team of animals used to pull a load.
10.
the force required to pull a load.
11.
the taking of supplies, forces, money, etc., from a given source.
12.
a selection or drawing of persons, by lot or otherwise, from the general body of the people for military service; levy; conscription.
13.
the persons so selected.
14.
Sports. a selecting or drawing of new players from a choice group of amateur players by professional teams, esp. a system of selecting new players so that each team in a professional league receives some of the most promising players.
15.
British. a selection of persons already in military service to be sent from one post or organization to another; detachment.
16.
a written order drawn by one person upon another; a writing directing the payment of money on account of the drawer; bill of exchange.
17.
a drain or demand made on anything.
18.
draft beer.
19.
an act of drinking or inhaling.
20.
something that is taken in by drinking or inhaling; a drink; dose.
21.
a quantity of fish caught.
22.
Nautical. the depth to which a vessel is immersed when bearing a given load.
23.
Also called leave. Metallurgy. the slight taper given to a pattern so that it may be drawn from the sand without injury to the mold.
24.
Metalworking.
a.
the change in sectional area of a piece of work caused by a rolling or drawing operation.
b.
a taper on a die or punch permitting it to be withdrawn readily from the work.
25.
Masonry. a line or border chiseled at the edge of a stone, to serve as a guide in leveling the surfaces.
26.
Textiles.
a.
the degree of attenuation produced in fibers during yarn processing, expressed either by the ratio of the weight of raw to the weight of processed fiber, or by the ratio between the varying surface speeds of the rollers on the carding machine.
b.
the act of attenuating the fibers.
27.
an allowance granted to a buyer for waste of goods sold by weight.
–verb (used with object)
28.
to draw the outlines or plan of; sketch.
29.
to draw up in written form; compose.
30.
to draw or pull.
31.
to take or select by draft, esp. for military service.
32.
Masonry. to cut a draft on.
–verb (used without object)
33.
to do drafting; work as a draftsman.
34.
(in an automobile race) to drive or ride close behind another car so as to benefit from the reduction in air pressure created behind the car ahead.
–adjective
35.
used or suited for drawing loads: a draft horse.
36.
drawn or available to be drawn from a cask rather than served from a sealed bottle: draft ale.
37.
being a tentative or preliminary outline, version, design, or sketch.
—Idiom
38.
on draft, available to be drawn from a cask rather than from a sealed bottle: imported beer on draft.
Also, especially British, draught (for defs. 1, 3–10, 18–25, 38–33, 35–37).

Origin:
later sp. of draught (since 16th century)

—Related forms
draft·a·ble, adjective
drafter, noun
an·ti·draft, adjective
pre·draft, noun, verb (used with object)
re·draft, verb (used with object)
un·draft·a·ble, adjective
un·draft·ed, adjective

—Can be confused: draft, draught, draughts, drought (see pronunciation note at draught).
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To draught
World English Dictionary
draught or draft (drɑːft) [Click for IPA pronunciation guide]
 
—n
1.  a current of air, esp one intruding into an enclosed space
2.  a.  the act of pulling a load, as by a vehicle or animal
 b.  (as modifier): a draught horse
3.  the load or quantity drawn
4.  a portion of liquid to be drunk, esp a dose of medicine
5.  the act or an instance of drinking; a gulp or swallow
6.  the act or process of drawing air, smoke, etc, into the lungs
7.  the amount of air, smoke, etc, inhaled in one breath
8.  a.  beer, wine, etc, stored in bulk, esp in a cask, as opposed to being bottled
 b.  (as modifier): draught beer
 c.  on draught drawn from a cask or keg
9.  Also called: draughtsman, US and Canadian equivalent: checker any one of the 12 flat thick discs used by each player in the game of draughts
10.  the depth of a loaded vessel in the water, taken from the level of the waterline to the lowest point of the hull
11.  feel the draught to be short of money
 
[C14: probably from Old Norse drahtr, of Germanic origin; related to draw]
 
draft or draft
 
—n
 
[C14: probably from Old Norse drahtr, of Germanic origin; related to draw]
 
'draughter or draft
 
—n
 
'drafter or draft
 
—n

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Word Origin & History

draft
c.1500, spelling variant of draught (q.v.) to reflect change in pronunciation. Meaning "rough copy of a writing" (something "drawn") is attested from 14c.; that of "preliminary sketch from which a final copy is made" is from 1520s. The meaning "to draw off a group for special duty" is from 1703, in U.S. especially of military service; the v. in this sense first recorded 1714. Draftee is from 1866. Sense in bank draft is from 1745.

draught
c.1200, from O.E. *dreaht, *dræht, related to dragan "to draw, drag" (see drag). Oldest sense besides that of "pulling" is of "drinking;" meaning "current of air" ("drawn" through an opening) is 18c. It retains the functions that did not branch off with draft.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

draft definition

or chiefly British draught Pronunciation: /ˈdraft, ˈdrȧft/
Function: n
1 : a portion (as of medicine) poured out or mixed for drinking : DOSE
2 : a current of air in a closed-in space
draftyor chiefly British draughty Pronunciation: /ˈdraf-tē, ˈdrȧf-/
Function: adj

draught definition

draughty, chiefly British variant of DRAFT , DRAFTY
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2007 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
Cite This Source

draft (drāft)
n.
A measured portion of a liquid or aerosol medication; a dose.

The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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Legal Dictionary

Main Entry: draft
Function: transitive verb
1 : to select for some purpose; specifically : to conscript for military service
2 : to compose or prepare esp. the preliminary version of <drafting legislation> intransitive verb : to practice draftsmanship —draft·er noun
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law, © 1996 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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Cultural Dictionary

draft definition


A system for selecting young men for compulsory military service, administered in the United States by the Selective Service System. At present the United States relies on a volunteer military and does not have a draft, though young men are required by law to register with the Selective Service. (See also conscientious objector and draft dodger.)

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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