sink ships

Meanings

1. 1verbtransitive

   to cause a ship or boat to go under the water and be destroyed

   Grammar: Takes an object: sink a ship. The subject can be a person, a weapon, or a storm.

   Patterns

   • sink a ship
   • sink ships
   • be sunk by something

   The submarine sank three enemy ships in one night.

   The storm sank several fishing boats near the coast.

   The battleship was sunk by a torpedo.

2. 2verbintransitive

   to go down below the surface of water (of a ship or boat itself)

   Grammar: No object; the subject is the ship. Compare: The ship sank (no object) vs. They sank the ship (with object).

   Patterns

   • a ship sinks
   • the ship sank

   The Titanic sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg.

   Several ships sank during the hurricane.

Word forms

Common combinations

sink a ship

The captain gave the order to sink the enemy ship.

ships sink

In heavy fog, ships often sink after collisions.

be sunk by

The cargo vessel was sunk by a mine.

sink without trace

The boat sank without trace in the deep ocean.

Synonyms and how they differ

scuttle

To scuttle a ship means to sink it on purpose by opening holes in the bottom; 'sink' is the general word.

submerge

'Submerge' means to go completely under water, but it does not imply destruction; a submarine submerges but is not sunk.

capsize

'Capsize' means to turn upside down in the water, which may or may not lead to sinking.

Opposites

Word family

sinker noun

A weight used to make a fishing line sink.

sunken adjective

Having gone under water; e.g., a sunken ship.

Commonly confused: sink ships or sank?

Practice

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