\ ˈdrau̇n 
\
\drowned\ ˈdrau̇nd \; drowning\ ˈdrau̇-niŋ \
\; drowning\ ˈdrau̇-niŋ \Definition of drown
: to become drowned
fell in the river and drowned chicken drowning in barbecue sauce drowning in paperwork
1a : 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 outturned up the radio to drown out the noise
4a : to drive out (something, such as a sensation or an idea)
drowned his sorrows in liquor
b : overwhelm was drowned in homework
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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.
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Recent Examples on the Web Even their fervent chants didn’t drown out sound of the rustling leaves blowing across the university’s desolate Sproul Plaza.
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Rachel Swan, SFChronicle.com, "Across Bay Area, Biden and Trump supporters await elusive election result," 6 Nov. 2020 Election night is the ideal time to cook some hotdogs and drown them in that same chili.
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Dana Mcmahan, The Courier-Journal, "No matter who wins, here are some chef picked comfort foods for election night and beyond," 3 Nov. 2020 The other Marine did not drown, the paper reported.
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Robert Gearty, Fox News, "Marine who drowned saving another Marine honored for heroism," 31 Oct. 2020 The search for the identity of the dead is problematic—Nilsen would meet his victims-to-be in the streets and bars of the city, lure them to his apartment, strangle or drown them and then live for some time with their corpses.
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John Anderson, WSJ, "‘Des’ Review: Hunting Down a Killer’s Victims," 14 Oct. 2020 If loud neighbors, roommates, or street noise keep you from focusing, buy a sound machine to drown them out.
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Matt Jancer, Wired, "How to Create an Inviting Yoga Space at Home," 24 Aug. 2020 The water down there is black as ink and the waves drown themselves.
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Namwali Serpell, Harper's Magazine, "The Work of Art," 18 Aug. 2020 It was meant to be an act of solidarity and support, but instead managed to drown out information and resources shared by organizers and activists.
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Reginald Dwayne Betts Kiese Makeba Laymon Carina Del Valle Schorske Dessa Irina Aleksander Sam Dolnick Mark Binelli Maggie Jones Rob Hoerburger Jamie Lauren Keiles Devin Gordon Jazmine Hughes Jenna Wortham Jade Chang Taffy Brodesser-akner Kaitlyn Greenidge Rowan Ricardo Phillips Michael Paterniti Wesley Morris Ismail Muhammad Anthony Giardina, New York Times, "Remembering some of the artists, innovators and thinkers we lost in the past year.," 23 Dec. 2020 Other conspiracy theorists claim a more nefarious reasoning for the sinking: J.P Morgan was behind the switch, eager to use an inferior ship to drown his enemies onboard.
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David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "The Wild Conspiracy Theory That the Titanic Never Sank," 18 Dec. 2020
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'drown.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for drown
drown
verbEnglish Language Learners Definition of drown
: to die by being underwater too long and unable to breathe
: to hold (a person or animal) underwater until death occurs
: to cover (something) completely with a liquid
See the full definition for drown in the English Language Learners Dictionary
drown
verb\ ˈdrau̇n \
\drowned; drowning
Kids Definition of drown
1 : to die or cause to die from being underwater and unable to breathe
2 : to cover with a liquid
She drowns her salad with dressing.
3 : to overpower especially with noise
4 : to make helpless or overwhelmed
drowning in work
drown
verb\ ˈdrau̇n \
\drowned\ ˈdrau̇nd \; drowning\ ˈdrau̇-niŋ \
\; drowning\ ˈdrau̇-niŋ \Medical Definition of drown
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)
: to suffocate by submersion especially in water
drowned three kittens
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Time Traveler for drown
The first known use of drown was in the 14th century
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