- sink
- sink [siŋk]vi.sank or sunk, sunk, sinking [ME sinken < OE sincan, akin to Ger sinken < IE base * sengw-, to fall, sink > Gr heaphthē, (he) sank]1. to go beneath the surface of water, deep snow, soft ground, etc. so as to be partly or completely covered2. to go down slowly; fall or descend gradually3. to appear to fall or descend [the sun sinking in the west]4.a) to become lower in level; diminish in height or depth [a lake that has sunk three inches]b) to slope downward (from, to, etc.)5. to diminish or decrease in degree, volume, or strength; subside, as wind, flames, a sound, spirits, etc.6. to become lower in value or amount; lessen, as prices, funds, etc.7. to seem or become hollow or shrunken; recede, as the cheeks or eyes8. to pass gradually (into sleep, despair, lethargy, etc.)9. to become increasingly and dangerously ill; approach death; fail10.a) to lose position, wealth, prestige, dignity, etc.b) to lose or abandon one's moral values and stoop (to some unworthy action)11. to become absorbed; penetratevt.1. to cause to submerge or go beneath the surface [to sink a boat, to sink a spade into the ground]2. to cause or allow to fall or go down; lower3. to make (a well, mine, engraved design, etc.) by digging, drilling, or cutting4. to cause to penetrate or become absorbed5. to reduce in volume, amount, degree, or intensity6.a) to invest (money, capital, etc.)b) to lose by investing7. to hold back, suppress, or conceal (evidence, identity, personal interests, etc.)8. to pay up (a debt)9.a) to cause to lose courage, strength, etc. or position, dignity, etc.b) to debase (character, dignity, etc.)10. to defeat; undo; ruin☆ 11. Sports to put (a basketball, golf ball, etc.) through the net, into the cup, etc. so as to scoren.[ME sinke < the v.]1. a cesspool or sewer2. any place or thing considered morally filthy or corrupted3. any of various basins, as in a kitchen or laundry, connected with a drainpipe and, usually, a water supply4. a repository or device for collecting, removing, or absorbing energy, heat, a specific substance, etc. from a system and then disposing of or dissipating it☆ 5. Geol.a) an area of slightly sunken land, esp. one in which water collects, often forming a salt lake, or disappears by evaporation or percolation into the groundb) SINKHOLE (sense 2)——————sink inInformal to be grasped by the mind, esp. with difficulty; be recognized or understood in fullsinkableadj.
English World dictionary. V. Neufeldt. 2014.