glug
Americanverb (used without object)
noun
noun
Etymology
Origin of glug
First recorded in 1890–95; imitative
Explanation
When something glugs it makes the sloshing, gurgling sound of liquid being poured out of a bottle. You might glug some milk onto that sugary cereal and call it breakfast! There's a distinctive sound you make when you thirstily gulp water from a bottle or pour a healthy amount of olive oil into a pan: glug, glug, glug. This imitative, informal word comes from the Old English glub, "to swallow greedily." You can use it as a noun or a verb, so you might ask for a glug of syrup on your pancakes or glug an energy drink after a run on a hot day.
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:
Mix together a beloved film simmering for decades, a sprinkling of social media hype and a generous glug of star power and you just might conjure up the long-awaited sequel to Practical Magic.
From BBC ● Sep. 11, 2026
Despite the care demands, the five-ply build makes this sturdy pan worth using, even if you’ll need a glug or two of oil as the coating wears.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2025
You could add a dab of cream cheese to your sauce or a glug of heavy cream.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 9, 2023
Over time, chefs have tinkered with tradition, taking hachis from humble to haute, applying rigorous technique and using luxurious ingredients such as veal demi-glace, rib-eye and a glug of good Burgundy wine.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 28, 2023
So I pull out my chair, sit on it, grab my orange juice, glug it down, and thump the glass onto the place mat.
From "Things Not Seen" by Andrew Clements
Daniel Bachmann Andersen, a 34-year-old competitor from Denmark, estimated that he glugged about 10 litres ahead of his appearance in the equestrian dressage contest on Tuesday.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2024
They went on their merry way, glugged down in vast quantities outside the cocktail-snob bubble.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 23, 2023
That’s the result of a serum concocted by Walter, that when glugged, turns a person into a … see above.
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 23, 2019
The outcome of the bonus season will help determine how many boats are sold at this week's London boat show, luxury homes bought and fine wines glugged.
From The Guardian ● Jan. 13, 2013
Then, perhaps realizing he had nothing to lose, he snatched the cup and glugged it down.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Never mind glugging water and taking medication, it turns out sinking birdies putts is the best cure for sickness.
From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026
“So now you have the lovely glugging of the syrup on the soundtrack. That’s it.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 23, 2025
Then, in response to a recording, the elusive American Bittern makes its extraordinary display call—a series of bellowing gulps, as though it's glugging a gallon of water—eliciting a hushed YES! from the birders.
From Scientific American ● Sep. 15, 2021
Why you can’t shake it: There are a million excuses we all come up with for not glugging enough.
From Time ● Jan. 4, 2017
In fact, he was splashing and glugging and waving his arms as high above the water as he could.
From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
