drench
Americanverb (used with object)
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drenches,
present (3rd person singular)
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drenched,
past participle, past
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drenching
present participle
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to wet thoroughly; soak.
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to saturate by immersion in a liquid; steep.
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to cover or fill completely; bathe.
trees drenched with sunlight.
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Veterinary Medicine. to administer a draft of medicine to (an animal), especially by force.
to drench a horse.
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Archaic. to cause to drink.
noun
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the act of drenching.
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something that drenches.
a drench of rain.
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a preparation for drenching or steeping.
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a solution, especially one of fermenting bran, for drenching hides or skins.
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a large drink or draft.
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a draft of medicine, especially one administered to an animal by force.
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Horticulture. a mixture of pesticide and water applied to the soil surrounding a plant.
verb
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to make completely wet; soak
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to give liquid medicine to (an animal), esp by force
noun
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the act or an instance of drenching
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a dose of liquid medicine given to an animal
Usage
What does drench mean? To drench is to soak with a liquid, as in The rain drenched me from head to foot. Often, drench is used in reference to rain, bodies of water, or a spill of some kind. To drench is also to saturate with liquid. When you saturate, or drench, a sponge with water, for example, you add as much water as the sponge can hold. Figuratively, to drench is also to cover or fill completely, such as drenching a plant with sunlight by placing the plant in a sunny window. You might also be drenched in a strong emotion, such as joy or sadness. In other words, you’re full of that joy or sadness. A drench is a large amount of liquid that is poured or dropped onto something, such as rain during a powerful rain storm. Drench is also the specific act of drenching something. Example: The rain is going to absolutely drench the clothes hanging on the laundry line.
Synonym Usage
See wet.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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drenchsimple
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drenchessimple
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have drenchedperfect
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has drenchedperfect
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am drenchingprogressive
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are drenchingprogressive
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is drenchingprogressive
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have been drenchingperfect progressive
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has been drenchingperfect progressive
Past
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drenchedsimple
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had drenchedperfect
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was drenchingprogressive
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were drenchingprogressive
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had been drenchingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of drench
First recorded before 900; Middle English drenchen, Old English drencan, causative of drincan “to drink” ( see drink); cognate with Dutch drenken, German tränken “to water, give to drink”
Explanation
To drench something is to get it thoroughly wet. You might drench your sister with the garden hose to pay her back for squirting you with her water pistol. When you're sailing a small boat on a stormy day, waves might drench you, and a torrential rain storm can also drench you, if you leave your umbrella at home. If your dog is crazy about swimming, he might drench himself often by plunging into whatever body of water you're near. Drench comes from the Old English drencan, which means both "submerge or drown" and "give drink to or make drunk."
Vocabulary lists containing drench
"All Summer in a Day" by Ray Bradbury
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Raining Cats and Dogs
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The Circuit
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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:
Showers that don’t drench you or flood the bathroom.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 15, 2026
Moderate to major coastal flooding could drench roads and waterfront property from Delaware to Cape Cod.
From Barron's ● Feb. 22, 2026
Ragasa is not expected to hit Taiwan directly but is set to drench the island's east coast with heavy rains.
From BBC ● Sep. 21, 2025
An atmospheric river forming off the coast is on its way to drench the region beginning Sunday and into the early part of next week.
From Seattle Times ● May 31, 2024
A cold drench of terror went down Lyra’s spine, and Pantalaimon crept very close.
From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman
The alternative, Red Ambience, drenches the car in a fathomless shade of garnet metallic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
The key to killing a local colony of red imported fire ants is using a combination of chemical drenches and greasy bait, because the carnivorous ants love protein.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2024
Birria bathes the meat in broth, tortas ahogadas dips or drenches the sandwich, and carne en su jugo, as the name implies, serves meat in its own juices.
From Salon ● Feb. 23, 2023
Around 25 million people in California are under a flood watch this weekend as the latest in a parade of deadly storms drenches the state.
From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2023
A woman so strong she burns heaven and drenches hell.
From "Looking for Alaska" by John Green
“This case is drenched with circumstantial evidence,” he said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 31, 2026
Shirtless and drenched in sweat on his treadmill, Lula runs.
From Barron's ● Aug. 2, 2026
As my mum and I walked, talking and eating tacos and fruit drenched in chilli and lime from street vendors, we felt immense pride in being Mexican.
From BBC ● Jun. 22, 2026
Soft pieces of bread are drenched in a buttery mixture of Dijon mustard, brown sugar and Worcestershire before being baked into a golden, shareable centerpiece.
From Salon ● Jun. 22, 2026
On Tuesday the marchers, drenched by torrential downpours, trudged along in their plastic ponchos, singing in the rain.
From "Because They Marched" by Russell Freedman
As a housemate, he was catastrophic—overturning wastebaskets, ransacking drawers and drenching manuscripts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 23, 2026
The most powerful Christmas storm in years slammed into Southern California on Wednesday, closing roads, flooding streets and drenching last-minute holiday shoppers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 24, 2025
Flooding struck the popular holiday island of Ibiza on Saturday for the second time in two weeks as the storm moved east and north into the Mediterranean after drenching southeastern Spain.
From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2025
This trigger, he said, was pulled with force, drenching several northern states.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2025
There is no dearth of men who understand these things, but these are not the men who order the wholesale drenching of the landscape with chemicals.
From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
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.
