Drags

Part of speech: verb

Pronunciation: /dɹæɡz/

Definitions

1. Pulls or pulls along a surface with effort or force ; causes something or someone to move slowly or feel tedious ; inhales smoke from a cigarette or other smoking device
2. Moves an object by pulling it across a floor or other surface ; makes an activity or process feel slow, dull, or boring ; draws in smoke by breathing in from a smoking item
3. Exerts force to move something by pulling across a ground or floor ; produces a slowing effect causing boredom or delay ; takes a puff or breath of smoke from a cigarette or pipe

Etymology: The verb "drags" is simply the third-person singular present of "drag", so the history that matters is that of "drag" itself, and it is a surprise. The verb and the Old English "dragan" ("to draw, draw oneself, go, protract") share a Proto-Germanic ancestor, but the English verb owes part of its shape to Old Norse "draga" ("to draw, attract"), and the two streams merged in Middle English as "draggen" and "dragen." Its closest sibling is "draw," the two forms are doublets that split apart in English, with "draw" keeping the lighter, more general sense. The verb's grip on the sense "pull along a surface" was reinforced by the noun "drag," meaning something hauled or dragged, such as a drag-anchor or grapnel from Low German. A Dutch-style cognate, Swedish "dragga," still means to drag anchor, which shows how literal the original picture was: a heavy object scraping over the ground behind a boat or a load.

Synonyms: pulls, tugs

Antonyms: pushes, lifts