sinker

[ sing-ker ]

/ ˈsɪŋ kər /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR sinker ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person or thing that sinks.

a person employed in sinking, as one who sinks shafts.

a weight, as of lead, for sinking a fishing line or net below the surface of the water.

Slang. a doughnut or, sometimes, a biscuit or muffin.

Also called sinkerball. Baseball. a pitched ball that curves downward sharply as it reaches the plate.

Nearby words

sink in, sink one's teeth into, sink or swim, sink through the floor, sinkage, sinker, sinkerball, sinkhole, sinkiang-uighur autonomous region, sinking, sinking feeling, a

Origin of sinker

1520–30; 1920–25 for def 4; 1925–30 for def 5; sink + -er¹

Related forms

sink·er·less, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for sinker

Plus, Fox, for many years, drove the agenda that the other cable nets swallowed hook, line, and sinker.
The Democrats Need to Stop Freaking Out About Obamacare and Take Charge|Michael Tomasky|November 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Her hairdresser in Malibu filled her in, and after studying every episode she was “hooked, line and sinker,” and signed on.
‘A Certain Age’—Shirley MacLaine Rattles Downton Abbey|Sandra McElwaine|December 27, 2012|DAILY BEAST
And yet, Rep. John Fleming (R-LA) took the bait hook, line, and sinker, posting about the outrageous story on his Facebook page.
Fooled by ‘The Onion’: 9 Most Embarrassing Fails|Kevin Fallon|November 27, 2012|DAILY BEAST
He said his reason was sharks but really it was because MCD was a sinker.
‘Bones’ Creator Hart Hanson on Working with Michael Clarke Duncan|Hart Hanson|September 4, 2012|DAILY BEAST

The explosive section then floated up towards the surface, unwinding the wire from the sinker.
Submarine Warfare of To-day|Charles W. Domville-Fife
Turning its hideous jaws upward, the ravenous creature had literally swallowed hook, line and sinker.
The Ocean Wireless Boys on the Pacific|Wilbur Lawton
A number of hooks on twisted horsehair traces are to be looped on, at equal distances apart, at the end nearest the sinker.
Shifts and Expedients of Camp Life, Travel & Exploration|W. B. Lord
W the weight of sinker necessary to overcome the tendency of the mine to move.
Torpedoes and Torpedo Warfare|C. W. Sleeman
I felt like rowing, and took the oars while Kate was mending her sinker and the cap'n was busy with a snarled line.
Deephaven and Selected Stories & Sketches|Sarah Orne Jewett

British Dictionary definitions for sinker

sinker

/ (ˈsɪŋkə) /

noun

a weight attached to a fishing line, net, etc, to cause it to sink in water

a person who sinks shafts, etc

US an informal word for doughnut

hook, line, and sinker See hook (def. 18)

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

Idioms and Phrases with sinker

sinker

see hook, line, and sinker.