English

drown

Meaning
Synonyms
Translations
Notes
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  1. (intransitive) To die from suffocation while immersed in water or other fluid.
  2. (transitive) To kill by suffocating in water or another liquid.
  3. (intransitive) To be flooded: to be inundated with or submerged in (literally) water or (figuratively) other things; to be overwhelmed.
  4. (figuratively, transitive) To inundate, submerge, overwhelm.
  5. (figuratively, transitive) To obscure, particularly amid an overwhelming volume of other items.

Frequency

B2
Pronounced as (IPA)
/dɹaʊn/
Etymology

Inherited from Middle English
drownen
Cognate with Middle English
drunknen
Cognate with Old Norse
drukkna
Cognate with Icelandic
drukkna
Cognate with Danish
drukne
Cognate with Old Norse
*drunkna
In summary

From Middle English drownen, drounen, drunen (“to drown”), of obscure and uncertain origin. The OED suggests an unattested Old English form *drūnian. Harper 2001 points to Old English druncnian, ġedruncnian (> Middle English drunknen, dronknen (“to drown”)), "probably influenced" by Old Norse drukkna (cf. Icelandic drukkna, Danish drukne (“to drown”)). Funk & Wagnall's has 'of uncertain origin'. It has been theorised (see e.g. ODS) that it may represent a direct loan of Old Norse drukkna, but this is described by the OED as being "on phonetic and other grounds [...] highly improbable", unless one considers the possibility of an unattested variant in Old Norse *drunkna.

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