drown

verb

ˈdrau̇n 

drowned ˈdrau̇nd  ; drowning ˈdrau̇-niŋ 

intransitive verb

: to become drowned

fell in the river and drowned

chicken drowning in barbecue sauce

drowning in paperwork

transitive verb

1

a

: to suffocate by submersion especially in water

b

: to submerge especially by a rise in the water level

villages drowned by the flooding river

c

: to soak, drench, or cover with a liquid

drowns her French fries in ketchup

2

: to engage (oneself) deeply and strenuously

drowned himself in work

3

: to cause (a sound) not to be heard by making a loud noise

—usually used with out

turned up the radio to drown out the noise

4

a

: to drive out (something, such as a sensation or an idea)

drowned his sorrows in liquor

b

: overwhelm

was drowned in homework

Synonyms

• deluge
• engulf
• flood
• gulf
• inundate
• overflow
• overwhelm
• submerge
• submerse
• swamp

Examples of drown in a Sentence

Four people drowned in the flood.

She fell in the river and drowned.

She claims that he tried to drown her.

He tried to drown himself.

The river overflowed, drowning whole villages.

The food was drowned in sauce.

The loud music drowned the sound of their conversation.

Recent Examples on the Web

But the technology is also drowning in false promises that suck your time, energy, money and possibly your well being. —Shira Ovide, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2024

This is mainly due to Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF (GBTC), which has been experiencing outflows for over two weeks, causing the total Bitcoin ETFs to drown. —Vinamrata Chaturvedi, Quartz, 2 Apr. 2024

An autopsy was performed and revealed the cause of death as drowning, officials said. —Paloma Chavez, Kansas City Star, 2 Apr. 2024

Profitable beach enterprises in South Haven may open the door to liability in drowning lawsuit against the West Michigan city. —Jennifer Dixon, Detroit Free Press, 31 Mar. 2024

Because of this, today's ocean of content has become a sea of sameness, where buzzwords and clichés often drown out originality and kill engagement. —Renae Gregoire, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

Attacks like jamming, which drowns out satellite signals, and spoofing, which sends misleading data, are increasing, diverting flights and confounding pilots far from battlefields. —Chris Buckley, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2024

Roughly 10% of drowning deaths in North America happen in submerged vehicles. —Suzanne Nuyen, NPR, 27 Mar. 2024

In the distance, the bare skeletons of trees that were drowned a century ago protruded from the lake bed. —Ian James, Los Angeles Times, 24 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English drounen

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Phrases Containing drown

• drown one's sorrows/fears

Kids Definition

drown

verb

ˈdrau̇n 

1

a

: to suffocate in a liquid and especially in water

b

: to become drowned

2

: to cover with water : inundate

3

: to overpower especially with noise

—usually used with out

the music was drowned out by shouting

Medical Definition

drown

verb

ˈdrau̇n 

drowned ˈdrau̇nd  ; drowning ˈdrau̇-niŋ 

intransitive verb

1

: to suffocate in water or some other liquid

2

: to suffocate because of excess of body fluid that interferes with the passage of oxygen from the lungs to the body tissues (as in pulmonary edema)

transitive verb

: to suffocate by submersion especially in water

drowned three kittens