ENGLISH
REFERENCE

drink

v. · n.
US //ˈdɹɪŋk// UK //dɹˈɪŋk// drink
Irregular verb past drank past participle drunk
  1. 1 to swallow liquid (v.)
    A1 Beginner

    to take liquid into your mouth and swallow it.

    to ingest a liquid through the mouth; functions as both a transitive and intransitive verb.

    Example

    You should drink plenty of water when the weather is hot.

    Example

    The marathon runners paused briefly at the hydration station to drink small amounts of electrolyte-enriched water before continuing the race.
    Pitfall
    I have drank three glasses of water.
    I have drunk three glasses of water.

    The past simple is 'drank', but the past participle used with 'have' is 'drunk'.

  2. 2 to consume alcohol (v.)
    A2 Elementary

    to drink alcohol, especially regularly or in large amounts.

    to consume alcoholic beverages, often implying habitual or excessive use when used without a direct object.

    Example

    He doesn't drink because he has to drive everyone home later.

    Example

    Although the social event provided an open bar, several guests chose not to drink for personal or health reasons.
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  1. 3 an alcoholic beverage (n.)
    A2 Elementary

    a portion of alcohol, or alcohol in general.

    a serving of an alcoholic beverage; also used uncountably to refer to alcohol as a social concept.

    Example

    They went out for a drink after work to celebrate the new contract.

    Example

    The host offered his guests a drink from his private collection of vintage whiskies to mark the occasion.
  2. 4 the sea or a lake (n.)
    C1 Advanced Informal Humorous

    a large body of water, like the ocean.

    a colloquial reference to a large body of water, such as the sea or a river, often used when someone falls in.

    Example

    The sailor slipped on the wet deck and fell right into the drink.

    Example

    The small aircraft suffered engine failure and was forced to ditch into the drink just a few miles off the coast.

    Teacher's tip

    This is a very specific idiom, usually used with 'the'. It is almost always used when someone or something falls into the water accidentally.
Etymology 1

From Middle English drinken, from Old English drincan (“to drink, swallow up, engulf”), from Proto-West Germanic drinkan, from Proto-Germanic drinkaną (“to drink”), of uncertain origin; possibly from Proto-Indo-European dʰrenǵ- (“to draw into one's mouth, sip, gulp”), nasalised variant of dʰreǵ- (“to draw, glide”). Cognates Cognate with Yola drink (“to drink”), North Frisian drank, drainke, drink, drinke (“to drink”), West Frisian drinke (“to drink”), Alemannic German trénge, trenhu, trinche, tringhien, trinke (“to drink”), Bavarian dringa, trinckn, trinkhn, trinkn (“to drink”), Cimbrian trinkan, trinkhan (“to drink”), Dutch, Low German drinken (“to drink”), German, Mòcheno trinken (“to drink”), Luxembourgish drénken (“to drink”), Yiddish טרינקען (trinken, “to drink”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål drikke (“to drink”), Elfdalian drikka (“to drink”), Faroese, Icelandic drekka (“to drink”), Jutish drenk (“to drink”), Norwegian Nynorsk drikka, drikke (“to drink”), Swedish dricka (“to drink”), Gothic 𐌳𐍂𐌹𐌲𐌺𐌰𐌽 (drigkan, “to drink”), Vandalic drincan (“to drink”), French trinquer (“to booze, drink alcohol”), Italian trincare (“to knock back (a drink)”), Spanish trincar (“to get drunk”).

Etymology 2

Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *drinkaną Proto-Germanic *drunkiz Proto-West Germanic *drunki Old English drynċ Middle English drink English drink From Middle English drink, drinke (also as drinche, drunch), from Old English drynċ, from Proto-Germanic drunkiz, drankiz. Cognates Cognate with Saterland Frisian Dronk (“drink”), Cimbrian gatrànkh (“drink”), Dutch drank, dronk (“drink”), German Getränk, trank, Trunk (“drink”), German Low German Drank, Drunk (“drink”), Vilamovian gytrenḱ (“drink”), Danish drik (“drink, beverage”), Icelandic drykkur (“drink, beverage”), Norwegian Bokmål drikk (“drink”), Norwegian Nynorsk drikk, drykk (“drink, alcohol”), Swedish dryck (“drink”), Gothic 𐌳𐍂𐌰𐌲𐌲𐌺 (draggk), 𐌳𐍂𐌰𐌲𐌺 (dragk, “drink”).

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