drift toward

drift toward (someone or something)

To slowly move closer to someone or something. I had to wait for the innertube to drift toward the steps of the pool before I could climb onto it.
See also: drift, toward
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

drift toward someone or something

to move slowly and gradually toward someone or something. The clouds drifted toward us, and we could see that a storm was coming. As the clouds drifted toward us, we could feel the humidity increase.
See also: drift, toward
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
See also:
  • drift toward (someone or something)
  • toward
  • drift with
  • drift with (something)
  • climb on
  • climb on(to) (someone or something)
  • hop on
  • hop on(to something)
  • drift
  • drift in(to) (something)
References in classic literature
It may not have been so always, for I remember a black night when a poor lieutenant lay down in an oarless boat and let it drift toward the weir.
The Little White Bird
Milady, however, saw that this sort of narrative amused her very much, and kept at it; only she now let her conversation drift toward the cardinal.
Three Musketeers
That day and the following they continued to drift toward the island.
Giuseppe Santori: An Italian castaway on Jeju (part 3)
The United States had been deeply worried about Sri Lanka's drift toward China under the Rajapaksa presidency for years.
Sri Lanka's Constitutional Crisis: The Geopolitical Dimension
The youths sailed out near Camiguin island on June 11 and encountered engine problems, which caused their boat to drift toward the northeast part of Yami island near Taiwan.
Taiwanese boat rescues two Filipino fishermen off Batanes
Especially during the winter, northeasterly winds would help garbage and plastic drift toward the north coast of the islands, according to a Central News Agency report, while in summer, the beaches on the south side would suffer most.
Taiwan environmentalists clear 10,000 plastic bottles from Penghu beaches
Subsequently, an apparent "halting of drift toward resistance" was observed by researchers from 2011 to 2013.
2014 saw spike in antibiotic-resistant gonorrhea
McCain again asked if Bass believes that many of the actions that Erdoy-an has taken, such as "suppressing the social media -- YouTube and Twitter -- and restrictions on Internet freedom and an independent media," show a drift toward authoritarianism.
US Senate confirms John Bass as ambassador to Turkey
As Abby dashes off to find her son, those who stuck by her start to drift toward Samantha's (above) community, and Tom spies a chance to seize power.
Tuesday: PICK OF THE DAY
We've all been taught that the browns of the old masters were there to model the figure, to create forms of palpable weight and volume, and that the pure hues of the Impressionists initiated the drift toward modernism by sacrificing solidity to the realization of the flat, decorative surface.
Gillian Carnegie: Cabinet
And as ozone's precursors drift toward the country, they produce even more ozone.
Better in the city?
As the grains drift toward the inner solar system, they're buffeted by the solar wind.
Cosmic rays from the solar system. (Astronomy)
They fear a drift toward what one aide to Senator Jesse Helms calls a "Clinton-like policy," that puts trade ahead of security and human rights concerns.
CEOS VS. HAWKS
It's ironic that the Salvation Army would drift toward the Religious Right camp, given its origins as a progressive organization concerned about the needs of the poor.
THE SALVATION ARMY: DECLARING WAR ON CHURCH-STATE SEPARATION?
Malaysia took offense over Howard's remarks Monday noting "a drift toward a more authoritarian approach" following the police crackdown on supporters of Anwar's reform movement.
Malaysia lodges official protest over Howard's remarks