drive-by

UK: /ˈdraɪvbaɪ/ US: /ˈdraɪvˌbaɪ/ ,(drīv′bī′)

WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025

drive-by /ˈdraɪvˌbaɪ/  adj., n., pl. -bys. 
adj. [before a noun]

1. accomplished while driving past the victim in a moving vehicle:
   The gang member was killed in a drive-by shooting.
2. casual;
   superficial:
   a drive-by news report.
3. involving a brief stay in a hospital:
   drive-by surgery.

n. [countable]
4. a drive-by shooting.

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

drive-by  (drīv′bī′), n., pl. -bys, adj. 
n. 

1. the action of driving by a specified locality, object, etc.:
   a drive-by of Nelson's Monument.
2. a drive-by shooting:
   The gang member was killed in a drive-by.

adj. 

3. consisting of or featuring a drive-by:
   We boarded the sightseeing bus for a drive-by tour of the nation's capital.
4. occurring while driving past a person, object, etc.:
   a drive-by shooting.
5. casual;
   superficial;
   offhand:
   a drive-by news analysis.
6. involving a brief stay in a hospital, clinic, etc.:
   a drive-by mastectomy.

• noun, nominal, adjective, adjectival use of verb, verbal phrase drive by

drive-by, +adj. 

1. occurring while driving past a person:
   a drive-by shooting.
2. casual;
   superficial;
   offhand:
   a drive-by news analysis.
3. involving a brief stay in a hospital, clinic, etc.:
   a drive-by mastectomy.

n. 

4. a drive-by shooting.

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

drive-by shooting, drive-by noun

1. an incident in which a person, building, or vehicle is shot at by someone in a moving vehicle