SINK (sank, sunk, sunken)

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does sink mean? 

• SINK (noun)
  The noun SINK has 4 senses:

1. plumbing fixture consisting of a water basin fixed to a wall or floor and having a drainpipe

2. (technology) a process that acts to absorb or remove energy or a substance from a system

3. a depression in the ground communicating with a subterranean passage (especially in limestone) and formed by solution or by collapse of a cavern roof

4. a covered cistern; waste water and sewage flow into it

  Familiarity information: SINK used as a noun is uncommon.

• SINK (verb)
  The verb SINK has 9 senses:

1. fall or descend to a lower place or level

2. cause to sink

3. pass into a specified state or condition

4. go under

5. descend into or as if into some soft substance or place

6. appear to move downward

7. fall heavily or suddenly; decline markedly

8. fall or sink heavily

9. embed deeply

  Familiarity information: SINK used as a verb is familiar.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SINK (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Plumbing fixture consisting of a water basin fixed to a wall or floor and having a drainpipe

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("sink" is a kind of...):

plumbing fixture (a fixture for the distribution and use of water in a building)

Meronyms (parts of "sink"):

drain basket (a filter in a sink drain; traps debris but passes water)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "sink"):

kitchen sink (a sink in a kitchen)

basin; lavatory; washbasin; washbowl; washstand (a bathroom sink that is permanently installed and connected to a water supply and drainpipe; where you can wash your hands and face)

Sense 2

Meaning:

(technology) a process that acts to absorb or remove energy or a substance from a system

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural processes

Context example:

the ocean is a sink for carbon dioxide

Hypernyms ("sink" is a kind of...):

action; activity; natural action; natural process (a process existing in or produced by nature (rather than by the intent of human beings))

Domain category:

applied science; engineering; engineering science; technology (the discipline dealing with the art or science of applying scientific knowledge to practical problems)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "sink"):

heat sink (a metal conductor specially designed to conduct (and radiate) heat)

Antonym:

source ((technology) a process by which energy or a substance enters a system)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A depression in the ground communicating with a subterranean passage (especially in limestone) and formed by solution or by collapse of a cavern roof

Classified under:

Nouns denoting natural objects (not man-made)

Synonyms:

sink; sinkhole; swallow hole

Hypernyms ("sink" is a kind of...):

depression; natural depression (a sunken or depressed geological formation)

Sense 4

Meaning:

A covered cistern; waste water and sewage flow into it

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Synonyms:

cesspit; cesspool; sink; sump

Hypernyms ("sink" is a kind of...):

cistern (an artificial reservoir for storing liquids; especially an underground tank for storing rainwater)

• SINK (verb)

Conjugation:

Sense 1

Meaning:

Fall or descend to a lower place or level

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

drop; drop down; sink

Context example:

He sank to his knees

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

change posture (undergo a change in bodily posture)

Verb group:

drop (let fall to the ground)

fall off; sink; slump (fall heavily or suddenly; decline markedly)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "sink"):

drop open; fall open (open involuntarily)

droop; flag; sag; swag (droop, sink, or settle from or as if from pressure or loss of tautness)

sag; sag down (cause to sag)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s

Sense 2

Meaning:

Cause to sink

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Context example:

The Japanese sank American ships in Pearl Harbor

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

displace; move (cause to move or shift into a new position or place, both in a concrete and in an abstract sense)

Cause:

go down; go under; settle; sink (go under)

Verb group:

go down; go under; settle; sink (go under)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "sink"):

settle (cause to become clear by forming a sediment (of liquids))

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s something
Something ----s something

Sentence example:

The men sink the boat

Sense 3

Meaning:

Pass into a specified state or condition

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

lapse; pass; sink

Context example:

He sank into nirvana

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

move (go or proceed from one point to another)

Sentence frames:

Something is ----ing PP
Somebody ----s PP

Sense 4

Meaning:

Go under

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

go down; go under; settle; sink

Context example:

The raft sank and its occupants drowned

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

come down; descend; fall; go down (move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way)

Verb group:

sink (cause to sink)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "sink"):

settle; subside (sink down or precipitate)

founder (sink below the surface)

submerge; submerse (sink below the surface; go under or as if under water)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s

Sentence example:

They sink

Antonym:

float (be afloat either on or below a liquid surface and not sink to the bottom)

Also:

sink in (pass through)

Derivation:

sinker (a weight that sinks (as to hold nets or fishing lines under water))

sinking (a descent as through liquid (especially through water))

Sense 5

Meaning:

Descend into or as if into some soft substance or place

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

sink; subside

Context example:

She subsided into the chair

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

come down; descend; fall; go down (move downward and lower, but not necessarily all the way)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s somebody PP
Somebody ----s something PP

Sense 6

Meaning:

Appear to move downward

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

dip; sink

Context example:

The setting sun sank below the tree line

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

decline (go down)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "sink"):

subside (sink to a lower level or form a depression)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Something is ----ing PP

Sense 7

Meaning:

Fall heavily or suddenly; decline markedly

Classified under:

Verbs of size, temperature change, intensifying, etc.

Synonyms:

fall off; sink; slump

Context example:

The real estate market fell off

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

drop (go down in value)

Verb group:

drop; drop down; sink (fall or descend to a lower place or level)

Sentence frame:

Something ----s

Sense 8

Meaning:

Fall or sink heavily

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Synonyms:

sink; slide down; slump

Context example:

My spirits sank

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

break; cave in; collapse; fall in; founder; give; give way (break down, literally or metaphorically)

Sentence frames:

Something ----s
Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Sense 9

Meaning:

Embed deeply

Classified under:

Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging

Synonyms:

bury; sink

Context example:

He buried his head in her lap

Hypernyms (to "sink" is one way to...):

embed; engraft; imbed; implant; plant (fix or set securely or deeply)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "sink"):

countersink; set (insert (a nail or screw below the surface, as into a countersink))

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something PP

 Context examples 

“Too late!” she said, sinking back on the bed.

(The Return of Sherlock Holmes, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

In that moment White Fang's free nature flashed forth again, and he sank his teeth into the moccasined foot.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

I had heard it before, during the sinking of the Martinez.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

We had sunk our voices, almost to a whisper, and continued to speak in that tone.

(David Copperfield, by Charles Dickens)

You sink your voice, but I can distinguish the tones of that voice when they would be lost on others.

(Persuasion, by Jane Austen)

I covered it carefully with dry wood and leaves and placed wet branches upon it; and then, spreading my cloak, I lay on the ground and sank into sleep.

(Frankenstein, by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley)

His unlooked-for return was enough in itself to make Catherine's heart sink, and for a few moments she hardly supposed there were anything worse to be told.

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)

She was ready to sink as she entered the parlour.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

The sled sank deep into the drifted snow and pulled hard.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

At any rate, the boat sank by the stern, quite gently, in three feet of water, leaving the captain and myself, facing each other, on our feet.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)