tank
a large receptacle, container, or structure for holding a liquid or gas: tanks for storing oil.
a natural or artificial pool, pond, or lake.
Military. an armored, self-propelled combat vehicle, armed with cannon and machine guns and moving on a caterpillar tread.
(in a video game) a category of job classes in a role-playing game, best suited to withstand large amounts of damage from an enemy: The only decent tank in this game is Warrior, just because the cooldown period for the Paladin and Dark Knight skills is way too long.: See also DD (def. 2), healer (def. 3).
Slang. a prison cell or enclosure for more than one occupant, as for prisoners awaiting a hearing.
to put or store in a tank.
(in a video game) to provoke and hold the attention of (an enemy character) so that it does not target other player characters in the party who are less able to withstand large amounts of damage: If you’re properly tanking this boss, you’ll never let him face your mages.
Slang. to do poorly or decline rapidly; fail: The movie tanked at the box office.
tank up,
to fill the gas tank of an automobile or other motor vehicle.
Slang. to drink a great quantity of alcoholic beverage, especially to intoxication.
Idioms about tank
go in / into the tank, Boxing Slang. to go through the motions of a match but deliberately lose because of an illicit prearrangement or fix; throw a fight.
in the tank, Slang.
failing, doing poorly, or declining: His grades were in the tank last quarter.
favoring, colluding, or assisting in a partisan way (often followed by with or for): The talk-show host was in the tank with the Green Party.
Origin of tank
1Other words from tank
- tank·less, adjective
- tank·like, adjective
Words Nearby tank
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use tank in a sentence
It might be possible to boost oxygen levels in a water tank to make this gas more available to sea stars.
Choked by bacteria, some starfish are turning to goo | Erin Garcia de Jesus | February 8, 2021 | Science News For StudentsSome techniques include increasing the oxygen levels in a water tank to make the gas more easily available to sea stars or getting rid of extra organic matter with ultraviolet light or water exchange.
Some bacteria are suffocating sea stars, turning the animals to goo | Erin Garcia de Jesus | January 20, 2021 | Science NewsKeep in mind that budget models usually don’t include filters or fans, which adds further cleaning requirements on top of the frequent refilling faced with small tanks.
The best humidifier: Fight dry air (and a dry nose) all winter long | PopSci Commerce Team | January 15, 2021 | Popular-ScienceIf there’s still fuel in my tank after this hour or so of cooking, I’ll make a big jar of super-simple salad dressing.
A fully-sealed HEPA filtration system means it’s great for anyone with allergies, and the easy-empty tank avoids mess.
“The events this year with Ukraine led to his ties with Cato being severed,” a source at the think tank told The Daily Beast.
Vaclav Klaus, Libertarian Hero, Has His Wings Clipped by Cato Institute | James Kirchick | December 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTtank Battle Kim's death -- a clean version of Kim's Face shot (no head burning or head exploding).
Sony Emails Show How the Studio Plans to Censor Kim Jong Un Assassination Comedy ‘The Interview’ | William Boot | December 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTtank Battle Jeep Guard Crush -- some editorial changes and the removal of all blood when the guards are crushed by the tank.
Sony Emails Show How the Studio Plans to Censor Kim Jong Un Assassination Comedy ‘The Interview’ | William Boot | December 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTAnd he would especially like American FGM-148 Javelins, man-portable anti-tank missiles to hit at Russian armor.
As they passed the runway, bullets shot up from the tall grass, puncturing a fuel tank.
‘Argo’ in the Congo: The Ghosts of the Stanleyville Hostage Crisis | Nina Strochlic | November 23, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIt is of the vertical kind, and stands on a shallow square tank, which forms the hot well.
Life of Richard Trevithick, Volume II (of 2) | Francis TrevithickOn one side loomed a huge tank, to the brink of which a rickety wooden ladder invited the explorer to ascend.
Dope | Sax RohmerA single oar used rather as rudder than paddle guides the tank to the middle of the stream, where it floats to its destination.
Journal of a Voyage to Brazil | Maria GrahamNo shooting and they would be miles away before they stopped rubbing their eyes in that one water-tank burg.
The milky juice is emptied from the cups into a tank and lime juice is added and it is then allowed to stand.
The Wonder Book of Knowledge | Various
British Dictionary definitions for tank
/ (tæŋk) /
a large container or reservoir for the storage of liquids or gases: tanks for storing oil
an armoured combat vehicle moving on tracks and armed with guns, etc, originally developed in World War I
(as modifier): a tank commander; a tank brigade
British and US dialect a reservoir, lake, or pond
photog
a light-tight container inside which a film can be processed in daylight, the solutions and rinsing waters being poured in and out without light entering
any large dish or container used for processing a number of strips or sheets of film
slang, mainly US
a jail
a jail cell
Also called: tankful the quantity contained in a tank
Australian a dam formed by excavation
(tr) to put or keep in a tank
(intr) to move like a tank, esp heavily and rapidly
slang to defeat heavily
(intr) informal to fail, esp commercially
Origin of tank
1- See also tank up
Derived forms of tank
- tankless, adjective
- tanklike, adjective
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 tank
In addition to the idiom beginning with tank
- tank up
also see:
- think tank
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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