1. [n]  small to medium-sized bottom-dwelling food and game fishes of shallow coastal and fresh waters that make a drumming noise
2. [n]  a hollow cast-iron cylinder attached to the wheel that forms part of the brakes
3. [n]  a musical percussion instrument; usually consists of a hollow cylinder with a membrane stretch across each end
4. [n]  a cylindrical metal container used for shipping or storage of liquids
5. [n]  the sound of a drum; "he could hear the drums before he heard the fifes"
6. [n]  a bulging cylindrical shape; hollow with flat ends
7. [v]  study intensively, as before an exam; "I had to bone up on my Latin verbs before the final exam"
8. [v]  play the drums
9. [v]  make a rhythmic sound; "Rain drummed against the windshield"; "The drums beat all night"

DRUM
DRUM

more details ...

1. \Drum\, n. [Cf. D. trom, trommel, LG. trumme, G. trommel,
   Dan. tromme, Sw. trumma, OHG. trumba a trumpet, Icel. pruma a
   clap of thunder, and as a verb, to thunder, Dan. drum a
   booming sound, drumme to boom; prob. partly at least of
   imitative origin; perh. akin to E. trum, or trumpet.]
   1. (Mus.) An instrument of percussion, consisting either of a
      hollow cylinder, over each end of which is stretched a
      piece of skin or vellum, to be beaten with a stick; or of
      a metallic hemisphere (kettledrum) with a single piece of
      skin to be so beaten; the common instrument for marking
      time in martial music; one of the pair of tympani in an
      orchestra, or cavalry band.
            The drums cry bud-a-dub.              --Gascoigne.
   2. Anything resembling a drum in form; as:
      (a) A sheet iron radiator, often in the shape of a drum,
          for warming an apartment by means of heat received
          from a stovepipe, or a cylindrical receiver for steam,
          etc.
      (b) A small cylindrical box in which figs, etc., are
          packed.
      (c) (Anat.) The tympanum of the ear; -- often, but
          incorrectly, applied to the tympanic membrane.
      (d) (Arch.) One of the cylindrical, or nearly cylindrical,
          blocks, of which the shaft of a column is composed;
          also, a vertical wall, whether circular or polygonal
          in plan, carrying a cupola or dome.
      (e) (Mach.) A cylinder on a revolving shaft, generally for
          the purpose of driving several pulleys, by means of
          belts or straps passing around its periphery; also,
          the barrel of a hoisting machine, on which the rope or
          chain is wound.
   3. (Zo["o]l.) See {Drumfish}.
   4. A noisy, tumultuous assembly of fashionable people at a
      private house; a rout. [Archaic]
            Not unaptly styled a drum, from the noise and
            emptiness of the entertainment.       --Smollett.
   Note: There were also drum major, rout, tempest, and
         hurricane, differing only in degrees of multitude and
         uproar, as the significant name of each declares.
   5. A tea party; a kettledrum. --G. Eliot.
   {Bass drum}. See in the Vocabulary.
   {Double drum}. See under {Double}.
   

2. \Drum\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Drummed}; p. pr. & vb. n.
   {Drumming}.]
   1. To beat a drum with sticks; to beat or play a tune on a
      drum.
   2. To beat with the fingers, as with drumsticks; to beat with
      a rapid succession of strokes; to make a noise like that
      of a beaten drum; as, the ruffed grouse drums with his
      wings.
            Drumming with his fingers on the arm of his chair.
                                                  --W. Irving.
   3. To throb, as the heart. [R.] --Dryden.
   4. To go about, as a drummer does, to gather recruits, to
      draw or secure partisans, customers, etc,; -- with for.
   

3. \Drum\, v. t.
   1. To execute on a drum, as a tune.
   2. (With out) To expel ignominiously, with beat of drum; as,
      to drum out a deserter or rogue from a camp, etc.
   3. (With up) To assemble by, or as by, beat of drum; to
      collect; to gather or draw by solicitation; as, to drum up
      recruits; to drum up customers.
   

Ancient slow, cylindrical magnetic media that were once state-of-the-art storage devices. Under BSD Unix the disk partition used for swapping is still called "/dev/drum"; this has led to considerable humour and not a few straight-faced but utterly bogus "explanations" getting foisted on newbies.

See also "The Story of Mel".