drown
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
-
to kill by submerging under water or other liquid.
-
to destroy or get rid of by, or as if by, immersion.
He drowned his sorrows in drink.
-
to flood or inundate.
-
to overwhelm so as to render inaudible, as by a louder sound (often followed byout ).
-
to add too much water or liquid to (a drink, food, or the like).
-
to slake (lime) by covering with water and letting stand.
verb phrase
verb
-
to die or kill by immersion in liquid
-
(tr) to destroy or get rid of as if by submerging
he drowned his sorrows in drink
-
(tr) to drench thoroughly; inundate; flood
-
to render (a sound) inaudible by making a loud noise
Other Word Forms
- drowner noun
- half-drowned adjective
- half-drowning adjective
- undrowned adjective
Etymology
Origin of drown
1250–1300; Middle English drounnen, Old English druncnian, perhaps by loss of c between nasals and shift of length from nn to ou
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This winter's extreme flooding has destroyed nests, drowned small mammals and threatens a sharp drop in butterflies and other species this spring.
From BBC
That entire pseudo-event was one one of those blink-and-you-miss-it moments that get drowned out in the endless baying insanity of our collective reality.
From Salon
She spent hours in front of this memorial altar, drowning in sadness.
From Literature
“No,” I said, “I’m not going to have any fit! I just thought of those monkeys. I bet they will get drowned in this storm. It would be just my luck.”
From Literature
I thought of my mother, drowning in all that gold.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
