: designed to allow patrons or customers to be served while remaining in their automobiles
a drive-up window

Examples of drive-up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Curtis, who won her first Oscar last year for her role in Everything Everywhere All at Once, shared photos of herself in a car, her In-N-Out drive-up server and her order in her seat’s cupholder. Victoria Edel, Peoplemag, 11 Mar. 2024 Fish fries will be held with a drive-up at the parish family center parking lot at 17116 Olympia in Redford Township. Susan Selasky, Detroit Free Press, 14 Feb. 2024 The culmination was an MDM drive-up distribution event, where the couple and their two sons — Liam and Maverick — pitched in. Hannah Kirby, Journal Sentinel, 12 Feb. 2024 The branch was renovated in 2004 and in 2010, including adding a drive-up service window. Sherry Greenfield, Baltimore Sun, 23 Jan. 2024 Corporate structures are employing both new and traditional schemes to eliminate competition, control markets and drive-up inflation, affecting the costs of essential needs like food. Gillian Brassil, Sacramento Bee, 5 Feb. 2024 The four-bedroom, 3,200-plus-square-foot residences were thoughtfully designed to function more like separate single-family homes, with completely different drive-up appeal. Dallas Builders Association, Dallas News, 29 Aug. 2023 Five Guys plans to open in the 3,035-square-foot building with a new interior prototype and a drive-up window next spring. Kathy Jumper, al, 13 Aug. 2023 The building itself was a drive-up motel, constructed in the eighties, without modern safety features such as interior hallways and elevators secured by key cards. Bernice Yeung, The New Yorker, 26 July 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'drive-up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1949, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of drive-up was in 1949

Dictionary Entries Near drive-up

Cite this Entry

“Drive-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drive-up. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

drive-up

adjective
ˈdrīv-ˌəp
: designed to allow customers to be served while remaining in their automobiles
a bank's drive-up window
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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