sinker

[ sing-ker ]

/ ˈsɪŋ kər /

Save This Word!

See 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 fastball that curves downward sharply as it reaches the plate.

diesinker.

QUIZ

QUIZ YOURSELF ON "WAS" VS. "WERE"!

Were you ready for a quiz on this topic? Well, here it is! See how well you can differentiate between the uses of "was" vs. "were" in this quiz.

Question 1 of 7

“Was” is used for the indicative past tense of “to be,” and “were” is only used for the subjunctive past tense.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of sinker

First recorded in 1520–30; 1870–75 in the sense “doughnut“; 1930–35 in the baseball sense; sink + -er¹

OTHER WORDS FROM sinker

sink·er·less, adjective

Words nearby sinker

sinistrotorsion, sinistrous, Sinitic, sink, sinkage, sinker, sinkerball, sinkhole, Sinkiang-Uighur Autonomous Region, sink in, sinking

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use sinker in a sentence

The Pirates also showed him data that suggested he throw fewer sinkers and put his four-seamer at the top of the zone.
‘A bit older and smarter,’ former Nats prospect Wil Crowe gets fresh start with Pirates|Jesse Dougherty|June 17, 2021|Washington Post
This is important for Wheeler’s ability to miss bats, since hitters have whiffed at his slider on over 30 percent of total swings since the start of the 2020 season, while whiffing at his sinker on under 20 percent of total swings.
Zack Wheeler Was Always The Next Big Thing. He’s Finally Put It All Together.|Brian Menéndez|June 9, 2021|FiveThirtyEight
Another scored once Corbin plucked Mathisen with a high sinker.
Nothing is working for Patrick Corbin, and the Diamondbacks make him, and the Nats, pay|Jesse Dougherty|April 16, 2021|Washington Post
He battled to another full count, slicing a sinker into the seats beyond third base.
Juan Soto keeps hitting, Joe Ross keeps dealing and the Nats win their first series|Jesse Dougherty|April 14, 2021|Washington Post

His sinker hovered around 94 mph but was too often up in the zone.
Erick Fedde stumbles early, Nats’ bats fizzle late as Braves complete doubleheader sweep|Jesse Dougherty|April 8, 2021|Washington Post
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
He therefore gave the order to have the fresh buoy, with its chain and sinker, ready to let go.
The Floating Light of the Goodwin Sands|R.M. Ballantyne
Before long we will have to take every tool maker and die-sinker in non-war work and put him in war production.'
Harper's Pictorial Library of the World War, Volume XII|Various
A horn spear, with barbs, and a fine shell sinker, shows that they lived on fish.
The Romantic Settlement of Lord Selkirk's Colonists|George Bryce
Miette had mechanically placed the sinker above the glass of water.
In Search of a Son|William Shepard Walsh
It consists of a float with a sinker at one end and a graduated tube or rod at the other.
A Textbook of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines.|Cornelius Beringer and John Jacob Beringer

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

Other Idioms and Phrases with sinker

sinker

see hook, line, and sinker.

sinker

Origin of sinker

OTHER WORDS FROM sinker

Words nearby sinker

Words related to sinker

How to use sinker in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for sinker

Other Idioms and Phrases with sinker