drown

[ droun ]

verb (used without object)

1. to die under water or other liquid of suffocation.

verb (used with object)

1. to kill by submerging under water or other liquid.
2. to destroy or get rid of by, or as if by, immersion:

   He drowned his sorrows in drink.

3. to flood or inundate.

   Synonyms: soak, drench, submerge, engulf, deluge

4. to overwhelm so as to render inaudible, as by a louder sound (often followed by out ).
5. to add too much water or liquid to (a drink, food, or the like).
6. to slake (lime) by covering with water and letting stand.

verb phrase

1. 1. to be overwhelmed by:

      The company is drowning in bad debts.

   2. to be covered with or enveloped in:

      The old movie star was drowning in mink.

drown

/ draʊn /

verb

1. to die or kill by immersion in liquid
2. tr to destroy or get rid of as if by submerging

   he drowned his sorrows in drink

3. tr to drench thoroughly; inundate; flood
4. trsometimes foll byout to render (a sound) inaudible by making a loud noise

Derived Forms

• ˈdrowner, noun

Other Words From

• drowner noun
• half-drowned adjective
• half-drowning adjective
• un·drowned adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of drown¹

1250–1300; Middle English drounnen, Old English druncnian, perhaps by loss of c between nasals and shift of length from nn to ou

Word History and Origins

Origin of drown¹

C13: probably from Old English druncnian; related to Old Norse drukna to be drowned

Idioms and Phrases

• like a drowned rat

Example Sentences

Rancho libertarians were seen as antiquated vendidos — sellouts — who would drown in the progressive blue wave that had covered California due to GOP xenophobia and that was now spreading across the country.

From Los Angeles Times

I know you mainlined cigarette after cigarette, I know you drank melted ice cream like a sleeping potion, I know you wept so much that you could drown in a self-made sea.

From Slate

Brothers David and Mark Aurigemma tried to drown out the election day noise with a walk through Los Angeles State Historic Park on Tuesday morning.

From Los Angeles Times

Paul pushes her to revel in her youth, saying, "Are you gonna let your grief drown you?"

From Salon

In theory, this is to prevent prisoners in different cells from being able to shout to each other; in practice, it is to drown out the screams of those being tortured.

From BBC

Related Words

• douse
• drench
• engulf
• flood
• go down
• immerse
• inundate
• sink
• soak
• suffocate
• swamp
• wipe out