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

His official cause of death determined by the Los Angeles County coroner was that the 34-year-old singer accidentally drowned in a bathtub after taking an anti-anxiety medication, alprazolam, and inhaling difluoroethane, a flammable gas. —Kelsie Hoffman, CBS News, 23 Apr. 2024

The Marion County Coroner's Office ruled both men died from drowning. —Sarah Nelson, The Indianapolis Star, 23 Apr. 2024

Officials have raised concerns about emergency accessibility on the island, local outlets reported, and a young man drowned while visiting the island in 2023. —USA TODAY, 19 Apr. 2024

Those who weren’t adopted were euthanized in a carbon-dioxide chamber, which was thought to be less painful than drowning. —Ben Goldfarb, The Atlantic, 18 Apr. 2024

Shame for the acoustics, however, as Lewis’ lovely voice often felt drowned out compared to everyone else’s. —Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 18 Apr. 2024

Julio Cervantes, who survived falling from the bridge, narrowly escaped drowning by rolling down his work vehicle’s window and fighting through the frigid water despite being unable to swim, attorneys said. —Eric Tucker, Fortune, 16 Apr. 2024

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

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