drink
Americanverb (used without object)
-
drinks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
drunk,
past participle, past
-
drank,
past, past participle
-
drinking
present participle
-
to take water or other liquid into the mouth and swallow it; imbibe.
-
to imbibe alcoholic drinks, especially habitually or to excess; tipple: They won't find jobs until they stop drinking.
He never drinks.
They won't find jobs until they stop drinking.
- Synonyms:
- tope
-
to show one's respect, affection, or hopes with regard to a person, thing, or event by ceremoniously taking a swallow of wine or some other drink (often followed byto ).
They drank to his victory.
-
to be savored or enjoyed by drinking.
a wine that will drink deliciously for many years.
verb (used with object)
-
drinks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
drunk,
past participle, past
-
drank,
past, past participle
-
drinking
present participle
-
to take (a liquid) into the mouth and swallow.
- Synonyms:
- quaff
-
to take in (a liquid) in any manner; absorb.
-
to take in through the senses, especially with eagerness and pleasure (often followed byin ).
He drank in the beauty of the scene.
-
to swallow the contents of (a cup, glass, etc.).
-
to propose or participate in a toast to (a person, thing, or event).
to drink one's health.
- Synonyms:
- toast
noun
-
drinks
plural
-
any liquid that is swallowed to quench thirst, for nourishment, etc.; beverage.
-
excessive indulgence in alcohol.
Drink was his downfall.
-
a swallow or draft of liquid; potion.
She took a drink of water before she spoke.
-
Informal. Usually the drink a large body of water, as a lake, ocean, river, etc..
His teammates threw him in the drink.
verb
-
to swallow (a liquid); imbibe
-
(tr) to take in or soak up (liquid); absorb
this plant drinks a lot of water
-
to pay close attention (to); be fascinated (by)
he drank in the speaker's every word
-
(tr) to bring (oneself into a certain condition) by consuming alcohol
-
to dispose of or ruin by excessive expenditure on alcohol
he drank away his fortune
-
(intr) to consume alcohol, esp to excess
-
to drink (a toast) in celebration, honour, or hope (of)
-
to be able to drink more intoxicating beverage than someone
-
to salute or celebrate with a toast
-
informal to drink alone
noun
-
liquid suitable for drinking; any beverage
-
alcohol or its habitual or excessive consumption
-
a portion of liquid for drinking; draught
-
informal the sea
Usage
As with many verbs of the pattern sing, sang, sung and ring, rang, rung, there is some confusion about the forms for the past tense and past participle of drink. The historical reason for this confusion is that originally verbs of this class in Old English had a past-tense singular form in a but a past-tense plural form in u. Generally the form in a has leveled out to become the standard past-tense form: We drank our coffee. However, the past-tense form in u, though considered nonstandard, occurs often in speech: We drunk our coffee. The standard and most frequent form of the past participle of drink in both speech and writing is drunk : Who has drunk all the milk? However, perhaps because of the association of drunk with intoxication, drank is widely used as a past participle in speech by educated persons and must be considered an alternate standard form: The tourists had drank their fill of the scenery.
Commonly Confused
See drunk ( def. ).
Synonym Usage
Drink, imbibe, sip refer to swallowing liquids. Drink is the general word: to drink coffee. Imbibe is formal in reference to actual drinking; it is used more often in the sense to absorb: to imbibe culture. Sip implies drinking little by little: to sip a cup of broth.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
drinksimple
-
drinkssimple
-
have drankperfect
-
have drunkperfect
-
has drankperfect
-
has drunkperfect
-
am drinkingprogressive
-
are drinkingprogressive
-
is drinkingprogressive
-
have been drinkingperfect progressive
-
has been drinkingperfect progressive
Past
-
dranksimple
-
drunksimple
-
had drankperfect
-
had drunkperfect
-
was drinkingprogressive
-
were drinkingprogressive
-
had been drinkingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of drink
First recorded before 900; Middle English drinken, Old English drincan; cognate with Dutch drinken, German trinken, Gothic drinkan, Old Norse drekka
Explanation
To drink is to sip, slurp, or gulp a liquid. On extremely hot days, it's important to drink plenty of water. When you ingest any liquid, you drink it, although the verb drink is very often used to refer specifically to the sipping and swallowing of alcoholic beverages. If a bartender asks, "Do you drink?" she probably means "Do you drink alcohol?" A drink, likewise, can mean any beverage — tea, water, or lemonade — or it can mean an alcoholic one. The Old English root, drincan means both "to drink" and "to engulf."
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.
See Examples For:
For five months, the creatures will not eat or drink, slowing all bodily functions as they shelter away from the harsh Alaskan weather.
From Barron's ● Sep. 30, 2026
Presbyterian firebrands such as the late Ian Paisley later tried to make it even harder to get a drink, calling alcohol “the devil’s buttermilk.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
Researchers examined 31 regular coffee drinkers and 31 people who did not normally drink coffee.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026
But Tarasenko, 26, is unable to feed his caffeine habit, as his favourite fizzy drink is no longer in stock at his local supermarket.
From Barron's ● Sep. 27, 2026
Star lowered her head at last, to drink.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
In addition to its namesake Pepsi soft drinks, the company has a broad snack portfolio that includes chips like Cheetos, Doritos and Tostitos.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 28, 2026
Decked out in Lidl’s signature colors and decorated with instant coffee and soup cans, the pub serves takeaway drinks around the back.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
Red Lobster has encouraged servers to sell Nauti Peach Long Islands and Lobster Punch drinks with its return of Endless Shrimp.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026
He warns bringing snacks or specialist drinks may undermine the impression candidates will want to give - that they're "serious and focused on the interview".
From BBC ● Sep. 25, 2026
About fifty people stood around in small groups in the apartment of a British diplomat, chatting and sipping drinks.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
Babysat me while my parents drank tea with her mother.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 23, 2026
During the 10-year study period, the women regularly reported how much coffee and tea they drank.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 2, 2026
Some replies cited absolute bans from doctors or prioritizing their child’s health, while others said they drank the beverages with their physicians’ blessings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
He made it himself, she tells BBC Global Women, but "it tasted bad… so I drank about half".
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
She tipped the bowl into Patch’s mouth and he drank it all.
From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff
“My perception sometimes was that they had drunk too much of their own Kool-Aid,” she said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 19, 2026
“Do we hold bars responsible for the things drunk people do on public sidewalks?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026
Testing by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation showed that two people had drunk from the bottle, leaving a mixture of their DNA.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
You’ve seen it, I’ve seen it, your second cousin who gets too drunk at every family wedding has seen it.
From Salon ● Sep. 11, 2026
Sandi starts doing ballet leaps that look pretty silly in a winter coat, and Yo staggers around as though she’s drunk to get a laugh out of us.
From "Before We Were Free" by Julia Alvarez
Improved learning and memory were observed only among participants drinking decaffeinated coffee.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 28, 2026
Since my longtime therapist’s behavioral approach had already helped rein in my personality enough to quit smoking and drinking, and marry a great guy, I decided to try his suggestion.
From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2026
Maharjan said he survived by reaching an upper floor of the tunnel site and drinking water while waiting for help.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
Whether it’s watching the movies for comfort or to turn a viewing party into a drinking game, millions of people tune in to laugh or cry watching them.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 25, 2026
Then we jog back around the track until we reach the water fountain, where we take turns drinking.
From "Keeping Pace" by Laurie Morrison
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.
