ink
Americannoun
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a fluid or viscous substance used for writing or printing.
-
a dark, protective fluid ejected by the cuttlefish and other cephalopods.
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Slang. a tattoo or tattoos.
Oh, nice, you got new ink!
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Informal. publicity, especially in print media.
Their construction plans got some ink in the local paper.
verb (used with object)
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inks,
present (3rd person singular)
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inked,
past participle, past
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inking
present participle
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to mark, stain, cover, or smear with ink.
to ink one's clothes.
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Informal. to sign one's name to (an official document).
We expect to ink the contract tomorrow.
verb (used with or without object)
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inks,
present (3rd person singular)
-
inked,
past participle, past
-
inking
present participle
noun
-
a fluid or paste used for printing, writing, and drawing
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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
verb
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to mark with ink
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to coat (a printing surface) with ink
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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inksimple
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inkssimple
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have inkedperfect
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has inkedperfect
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am inkingprogressive
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are inkingprogressive
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is inkingprogressive
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have been inkingperfect progressive
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has been inkingperfect progressive
Past
-
inkedsimple
-
had inkedperfect
-
was inkingprogressive
-
were inkingprogressive
-
had been inkingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ink
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English inke, inc, enke, from Old French enca, enque, ancre, from Late Latin encautum, variant of encaustum “burnt in, painted in,” from Greek énkauston “purple ink (used for imperial signatures),” noun use of neuter of énkaustos “burnt in”; see encaustic
Explanation
Ink is a colored liquid that you use to write with on paper. When you sign on the dotted line, you usually do so with ink. You'll usually find ink inside a pen, automatically flowing through its tip, although years ago people had to dip a quill into a pot of ink to write with ink. Other ways ink is used include printing images, stamping information, and drawing pictures. Another ink is the fluid released by certain mollusks, like squids, to hide them from predators. Ink, from the Old French encre, "dark writing fluid," has the Greek root enkaiein, "to burn in."
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:
Few things are more difficult to get down in immutable ink than the history of professional wrestling.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
In July, the New York Mets partnered with Novig, becoming the first Major League Baseball to ink a deal with a prediction market.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
The difference between the lead-bearing ink and the surrounding papyrus was striking.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026
With their help, he mixed carefully measured quantities of lead nitrate into lampblack ink, creating inks with several different lead concentrations.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 26, 2026
I don’t know what sort of invisible ink this is, but it’s working well.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
The new monochrome packages will go on sale in Japan May 25, Calbee said, blaming difficulties procuring raw materials such as naphtha, a petrochemical used in paints and inks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 12, 2026
Previously, researchers treated the polymer in these inks as a flaw because it interfered with electrical performance.
From Science Daily ● Apr. 18, 2026
The CEO of Blick Art Materials told Hyperallergic that the company had “purchased more inventory than normal for a few product lines to hedge against higher costs,” such as paints, inks, and utensils.
From Slate ● Mar. 8, 2025
The studios didn’t then have screeners or digital inks for their films, so a run at the Malibu Cinema was a good way to reach Oscar voters.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 3, 2025
“Using her special inks and papers,” Vonetta said.
From "One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia
Beyond this nuclear-generation deal, the companies also inked a 15-year agreement covering an additional 2,700 megawatts.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026
Regardless of the clear hurdles that remain before any new US-China deals are inked, it is clear that Trump views personal contact with Xi as vital to the process.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2026
The three leaders then inked the deal, seemingly ending more than a year of tension over the Arctic territory.
From BBC ● Sep. 22, 2026
In several of her novels, Ms. Mandel has had characters with beloved quotations tattooed on their bodies, a practice that inspired a real-life trend of the author’s fans being inked with lines from her books.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Andrew tore at the tape and plastic bag protecting the thick yellow envelope with “Clue” inked on the front.
From "Mr. Lemoncello's Library Olympics" by Chris Grabenstein
Díaz was the high-profile free agent the Dodgers signed to lock down the ninth inning for the next three seasons, inking him to a $69-million deal to do it, a record for relievers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
And the DOD hasn’t limited itself to mining, inking a $1 billion investment in defense contractor L3Harris’s Missile Solutions unit in exchange for convertible equity.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 5, 2026
An employee inking a company’s branding on their arms, legs or backs isn’t unheard of across American companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026
There were no actual tattoos on offer, given inking one requires time and space, but visitors could get stickers by artists for free.
From BBC ● May 29, 2026
“My grandmother told me he was an artist. He took the mountain rock to carve into inking stones.”
From "Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" by Grace Lin
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.
