ink

[ ingk ]

/ ɪŋk /

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See synonyms for: ink / inked / inking / inklike on Thesaurus.com

noun

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.

verb (used with object)

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.

verb (used with or without object)

Slang. to mark (the skin) with tattoos: The team agreed that they would all get inked if they brought home the championship this year.

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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

OTHER WORDS FROM ink

ink·er, nounink·less, adjectiveink·like, adjectivere·ink, verb (used with object)

un·inked, adjective

Words nearby ink

injurious, injury, injury list, injury time, injustice, ink, Inkatha, ink ball, inkberry, inkblot, inkblot test

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

How to use ink in a sentence

With so many options on the market, it can be tough to whittle down the optimal brand, ink quality, and pen type to suit your exact needs.
Add some verve to your life with these colorful pens|PopSci Commerce Team|September 11, 2020|Popular-Science
With ink consistency that falls in line with the standard gel pen, you won’t have to worry about smudging or being completely exact in your line drawing.
Add some verve to your life with these colorful pens|PopSci Commerce Team|September 11, 2020|Popular-Science
Even better, you can refill the ink to spare you from buying another set.
Add some verve to your life with these colorful pens|PopSci Commerce Team|September 11, 2020|Popular-Science
From affordable do-it-all photo printers with dye-based inks and dual-sided document printing, to studio-grade options that use archival grade pigments and thick fine art mediums, we’ve tried to include an option for every budget and skill level.
Professional photo printers for every budget|D.L. Cade|September 10, 2020|Popular-Science

That’s when a new era of terrorism will become truly visible, like secret ink, unless countries take note now.
Butterfly Effect: Pandemic Shrouds Terrorist Activities|Charu Kasturi|September 3, 2020|Ozy
Much ink has been spilled over the wonky science and plot contrivances of Interstellar.
‘Interstellar’ Is Wildly Ambitious, Very Flawed, and Absolutely Worth Seeing|Marlow Stern|November 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Powdered ink would adhere to the charged image and then it would be pressed via heat onto paper.
Pioneers in Printing|The Daily Beast|October 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The edges of the elegant paper are crackled; the ink bled into the linen weave long ago and has not faded.
How Gettysburg Did Not Unlock the Past|Laird Hunt|September 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
A lot of ink will continue to be spilled about the first-order problems surrounding that fact.
The Rhinohawks Come Roaring Back|James Poulos|September 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His ink ranges from images of his children to the Superman logo (that one seems especially fitting given his leaping blocks).
Team USA Lost, but Tim Howard Is a Winner|Emily Shire|July 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She also practises etching, pen-and-ink drawing, as well as crayon and water-color sketching.
Women in the fine arts, from the Seventh Century B.C. to the Twentieth Century A.D.|Clara Erskine Clement
And, old ink pot, tuck a horse blanket under my chin, and rub me down with brickbats while I feed!
The Book of Anecdotes and Budget of Fun;|Various
Maype he trinks ret ink gocktails, like de Injuns; maype he trinks Florita Vater, oder golone.
Alec Lloyd, Cowpuncher|Eleanor Gates
Her mother, wearing an ink-stained jacket, was busy at her desk, the pen scratching on the big sheets of pad paper.
The Girls of Central High on the Stage|Gertrude W. Morrison
Her hair was black as India ink, drawn back from her rounded forehead to knot softly at the back of her head.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various

British Dictionary definitions for ink

ink

/ (ɪŋk) /

noun

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

verb (tr)

to mark with ink

to coat (a printing surface) with ink

Derived forms of ink

inker, noun

Word Origin for ink

C13: from Old French enque, from Late Latin encaustum a purplish-red ink, from Greek enkauston purple ink, from enkaustos burnt in, from enkaiein to burn in; see en- ², caustic

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

ink

[ ĭngk ]

A dark liquid ejected for protection by most cephalopods, including the octopus and squid. Ink consists of highly concentrated melanin.