To see the tendency of discourse, esp what one is hinting at: And it won't show up. Get my drift?
[1927+; drift in this sense is found by 1549]
Idioms and Phrases with get the drift
get the drift
Also, catch the drift. Understand the general meaning or purport. For example, I didn't get the drift—do they want to go or not? or Over all the noise he barely managed to catch the drift of their conversation. The noun drift has been used for “purport” since the early 1500s.