ink
a fluid or viscous substance used for writing or printing.
a dark, protective fluid ejected by the cuttlefish and other cephalopods.
Slang. a tattoo or tattoos: Oh, nice, you got new ink!
Informal. publicity, especially in print media: Their construction plans got some ink in the local paper.
to mark, stain, cover, or smear with ink: to ink one's clothes.
Informal. to sign one's name to (an official document): We expect to ink the contract tomorrow.
Slang. to mark (the skin) with tattoos: The team agreed that they would all get inked if they brought home the championship this year.
Origin of ink
1Other words from ink
- ink·er, noun
- ink·less, adjective
- ink·like, adjective
- re·ink, verb (used with object)
- un·inked, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use ink in a sentence
After rumored courting by both ABC and NBC, Pippa Middleton is reportedly inking a deal to become a Today correspondent.
NBC’s Today Show ‘Hires’ Pippa Middleton | Lloyd Grove, Tom Sykes | November 5, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTBut we must also accept that the days of automatically inking her name at the top of the bracket are over.
After a Stunning Loss at the French Open, Tennis Star Serena Williams Is No Longer Queen | Lindsay Sakraida | June 1, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTBy the end of June, Lalbir Singh had finished the inking of his previous surveys, and was ready for fresh work.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921 | Charles Kenneth Howard-BuryThe inking pen was replaced by a metal wheel or disc, smeared with ink, and rolling on the paper at every dot or dash.
Heroes of the Telegraph | J. MunroA foot-power scroll-saw and saws, for a self-inking printing-press and furniture in good working order.
Harper's Young People, June 21, 1881 | Various
Rollers, composition, not so good as composition balls for inking certain kinds of wood-cuts, 650.
A Treatise on Wood Engraving | John JacksonI got the paper ready on the press and pulled the proof, he inking and I pulling all the afternoon.
The Life of James McNeill Whistler | Elizabeth Robins Pennell
British Dictionary definitions for ink
/ (ɪŋk) /
a fluid or paste used for printing, writing, and drawing
a dark brown fluid ejected into the water for self-concealment by an octopus or related mollusc from a gland (ink sac) near the anus
to mark with ink
to coat (a printing surface) with ink
Origin of ink
1Derived forms of ink
- inker, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for ink
[ ĭngk ]
A dark liquid ejected for protection by most cephalopods, including the octopus and squid. Ink consists of highly concentrated melanin.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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