Phrasal verb
drown in
Definition
phrasal verb. to have too much of something to deal with, or to be covered by a large amount of something.
phrasal verb. to be overwhelmed by an excessive amount of something; often used metaphorically for tasks, debt, or sensory input.
Examples
“I am drowning in paperwork this week.”
“The small charity was drowning in donations after the video went viral on social media.”
“Despite the company's outward success, the accounts revealed they were drowning in debt and unable to meet their immediate obligations.”
Examples
simple
“I am drowning in paperwork this week.”
contextual
“The small charity was drowning in donations after the video went viral on social media.”
complex
“Despite the company's outward success, the accounts revealed they were drowning in debt and unable to meet their immediate obligations.”
Usage
usually used in the continuous form ('drowning in') to describe a current state of being overwhelmed.
Teaching tip
help students distinguish between the literal sense (dying in water) and this figurative sense by focusing on uncountable nouns like 'work', 'debt', or 'emails'.
Pitfall
He is drowning with work.
He is drowning in work.
the verb 'drown' collocations with the preposition 'in' to show the environment that is overwhelming the person.
Phrasal verb
Particles
in
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
drown + in + object
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/drown-in