often attributive
1
: a colored usually liquid material for writing and printing
2
: the black protective secretion of a cephalopod
3
slang
: publicity sense 2d
4
informal
: one or more tattoos on a person's body
Whether or not it's your cup of meat, the proliferation of body-art mags suggests that a slew of folks have ink, and they didn't get it from reading the newspaper.—
Albert Mobilio
Albert Mobilio
inked; inking; inks
1
a
: to put ink on
ink a pen
ink a printing block
b
: to draw or write in ink
ink a design
—often used with incarefully inked in the letters
c
: to obliterate with ink
—usually used with out
inked out many lines
2
US, informal
a
: to affix one's signature to : sign sense 2a
an athlete who has inked a new contract
b
: to engage or hire by securing the signature of (someone) on a contract : sign sense 4
… has been inked to do the part of a judge in an HBO special …—Marge Crumbaker
Marge Crumbaker3
informal
: tattoo
… got himself an elaborate tattoo, his first, inked along his right shoulder …—S. L. Price
S. L. PriceKaufman plans on inking a tat to memorialize his accident.—Micah Abrams
Micah AbramsHis heavily muscled arms are inked shoulder to wrist.—Eve Conant
Eve ConantExamples of ink in a Sentence
Noun
Fill out the form using blue or black ink.
The printer is out of ink.
We're using four different inks for this poster.
Verb
They just inked a new partnership agreement.
the basketball star just inked a two-year contract with the most celebrated franchise in the NBA
Recent Examples on the Web
Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Feb. 2026
While the sage and ink blue colorways are more traditional, the new cranberry red is perfect for holiday bedscaping.
—Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 26 Feb. 2026
Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 28 Feb. 2026
In January, the company inked a deal with Google to power its artificial intelligence features, including a major Siri upgrade expected later this year.
—Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ink
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Noun
Rice cooked in a paella dish over a wood fire, oven-baked, or made in a creamy broth—with just vegetables, with fish or meat, with tomato, with squid ink—the possibilities are endless and there’s a rice dish to satisfy any palate.
—Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Feb. 2026
While the sage and ink blue colorways are more traditional, the new cranberry red is perfect for holiday bedscaping.
—Yelena Moroz Alpert, Architectural Digest, 26 Feb. 2026
Verb
As first reported by MassLive, the front office nearly inked Tonga to an extension last December only to have talks fall apart near the finish line.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 28 Feb. 2026
In January, the company inked a deal with Google to power its artificial intelligence features, including a major Siri upgrade expected later this year.
—Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 27 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ink
Cite this Entry
“Ink.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ink. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ink
1 of 2 noun1
: a usually liquid material for writing or printing
2
: the black protective secretion of a cephalopod
ink
2 of 2 verb1
: to put ink on
2
: to write or draw in ink
inker
noun
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
