drain

verb \ ˈdrān \

Updated on: 9 Dec 2017

Definition of drain

transitive verb

1 obsolete : filter

2 a : to draw off (liquid) gradually or completely

drained all the water out of the pool

b : to cause the gradual disappearance of

drain the region's wealth

c : to exhaust (see ¹exhaust 1b) physically or emotionally

feeling drained at the end of a long workday

3 a : to make gradually dry

drain a swamp

b : to carry away the surface water of

the river that drains the valley

c : to deplete or empty by or as if by drawing off by degrees or in increments

drained the country of its resources

d : to empty by drinking the contents of

drain a mug of beer

4 sports : drop 7c, sink

drain the putt

drained two free throws

intransitive verb

1 a : to flow off gradually

b : to disappear gradually : dwindle

his nervousness drained away, as it always did
—H. A. Sinclair

2 : to become emptied or freed of liquid by its flowing or dropping

waiting for the tub to drain

3 : to discharge surface or surplus water

drains into the Gulf of Mexico

—

drainer

noun

See drain defined for English-language learners

See drain defined for kids

Examples of drain in a Sentence

Drain the canned tomatoes before adding them to the pot.
The swamp has been drained.
I was waiting for the bathtub to drain.
The river drains into a lake.
Years of civil war have drained the country's resources.
The city's emergency fund has been drained.
I feel totally drained of energy this evening.

Recent Examples of drain from the Web

Meanwhile, drain the canned tomatoes in a colander.

— kate krader, Bloomberg.com, "How to Make Lilia Chef Missy Robbins’s Simple, Supercharged Red Sauce at Home," 7 Oct. 2017
Thais are known for a highly emotional adulation of Bhumibol, which palace officials assiduously cultivated over his 70-year reign, but the funeral will be an intensely somber event, intentionally drained of possibilities for spontaneity.

— Washington Post, "Funeral for Thai king a 5-day marathon of intense solemnity," 25 Oct. 2017
Without energy to power the systems, pumps don’t work, allowing sewage to build up on site instead of draining away to treatment plants.

— eleanor cummins, Slate Magazine, "In Puerto Rico, Surgery by Flashlight Is Just the Beginning," 23 Oct. 2017
By Sklar’s estimate, by the time the district can drain water, the islands will probably have been underwater for 288 days, about three weeks longer than the previous record.

— jenny staletovich, miamiherald, "Irma is long gone, but South Florida’s watery wilderness is still feeling the pain," 20 Oct. 2017
The key things to remember are to keep the plant hydrated and to make sure the water drains from the pot, as too much can cause the flower to wilt.

— katie robinson, Town & Country, "How to Grow Poinsettias So They'll Re-Bloom Next Christmas," 17 Oct. 2017
Lives were ended, crime waves were created, and city budgets drained as agencies fought the side effects of the taxation system.

— sam quinones, Los Angeles Magazine, "She Was a Realtor. And a Gang Leader.," 25 Sep. 2017
Though the Spanish later drained the surrounding waters to prevent frequent flooding, the effects of that decision can still be felt today.

— maya wei-haas, Smithsonian, "How Mexico City’s Unique Geology Makes Deadly Earthquakes Even Worse," 20 Sep. 2017
Even with background refresh turned off, Circa cofounder Matt Galligan found that the app drained 15 percent of his phone's battery over the course of a week.

— chelsea peng, Marie Claire, "Phone Battery Always Dying? Blame It on Facebook," 19 Oct. 2015

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'drain.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of drain

Middle English draynen, from Old English drēahnian — more at dry

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

drain Synonyms

Synonyms

bleed, draft, draw (off), pump, siphon (also syphon), tap

Antonyms

fill

Related Words

milk; suck; clear, empty, evacuate, exhaust, vacate, vacuate, void; decant, effuse; deplete; clean, flush, purge

Near Antonyms

bathe, douse (also dowse), drench, soak, souse, wash, water, wet; deluge, drown, flood, inundate, overflow; submerge, swamp

Synonym Discussion of drain

deplete, drain, exhaust, impoverish, bankrupt mean to deprive of something essential to existence or potency. deplete implies a reduction in number or quantity so as to endanger the ability to function.

- depleting our natural resources

drain implies a gradual withdrawal and ultimate deprivation of what is necessary to an existence.

- personal tragedy had drained him of all spirit

exhaust stresses a complete emptying.

- her lecture exhausted the subject

impoverish suggests a deprivation of something essential to richness or productiveness.

- impoverished soil

bankrupt suggests impoverishment to the point of imminent collapse.

- war had bankrupted the nation of resources

drain

noun

Definition of drain

1 : a means (such as a pipe) by which usually liquid matter is drained

2 a : the act of draining

b : a gradual outflow or withdrawal : depletion

a net drain from the East of five million souls
—G. W. Pierson

3 : something that causes depletion : burden

a drain on the city's resources

4 electronics : an electrode in a field-effect transistor toward which charge carriers move — compare gate, source

— down the drain

: to a state of being wasted or irretrievably lost

All their hard work went down the drain.

See drain defined for English-language learners

Examples of drain in a Sentence

The drain in the bathtub is blocked.

Recent Examples of drain from the Web

Football is every athletic department’s most expensive program and biggest potential revenue producer, and at the moment KU is circling the drain.

— sam mellinger, kansascity, "Bill Self and the KU basketball pressure he doesn’t want you to think about," 25 Oct. 2017
Hiebert threw the knife down a sewer drain and fled on foot.

— isabelle d'antonio, OrlandoSentinel.com, "19-year-old stabs man at house party in Longwood, deputies say," 22 Oct. 2017
Following Irma, monthly sampling by Miami-Dade County’s Division of Environmental Resources Management found the highest levels of chlorophyll in the secluded north basins and off Matheson Hammock, where a major canal drains into the bay.

— jenny staletovich, miamiherald, "The hurricane sent foul water from the sewers into Biscayne Bay. What happens now?," 22 Oct. 2017
Using a slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels and let drain; season with salt.

— andy baraghani, Bon Appetit, "Roasted Beets with Grapefruit and Rosemary," 17 Oct. 2017
The residents say the neighborhood’s sewer and storm drains already are overburdened and frequently clog.

— phil diehl, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Residents battle proposed subdivision in Olde Carlsbad," 7 Oct. 2017
For tech firms, financial obfuscation and cronyism are the most effective ways to ensure their monopoly profits do not go down the drain.

— The Economist, "SchumpeterWhat if large tech firms were regulated like sewage companies?," 23 Sep. 2017
Using a slotted spoon, transfer to a paper towel–lined plate and drain.

— woman's day staff, Woman's Day, "Cornbread, Sausage, and Chestnut Stuffing," 30 Aug. 2017
At the Milwaukee plant, the safety manager and workers said chemical residue was washed down a floor drain.

— jsonline.com, "Chemicals left in barrels leave workers and neighborhoods at risk," 15 Feb. 2017

Origin and Etymology of drain

see ¹drain

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1552

See Words from the same year

DRAIN Defined for English Language Learners

drain

verb

Definition of drain for English Language Learners

: to remove (liquid) from something by letting it flow away or out
of a container : to become empty of a liquid
of a liquid : to flow into, away from, or out of something

drain

noun

Definition of drain for English Language Learners

: something (such as a pipe) that is used for removing a liquid from a place or container
: something that uses a lot of time, money, etc.

DRAIN Defined for Kids

drain

verb \ ˈdrān \

Definition of drain for Students

drained; draining

1 : to remove (liquid) from something by letting it flow away or out

We need to drain water from the pool.

2 : to slowly make or become dry or empty

drain a swamp

3 : to flow into, away from, or out of something

The water slowly drained.

4 : to slowly disappear

All the joy of the music drained out of him.
—Mary Pope Osborne, Christmas in Camelot

5 : to tire out

She was drained by the busy weekend.

drain

noun

Definition of drain for Students

1 : something used to remove a liquid

the tub's drain

2 : something that slowly empties of or uses up

The long trip was a drain on Grandma's strength.

Medical Dictionary

drain

transitive verb \ ˈdrān \

medical Definition of drain

1 a : to draw off (liquid) gradually or completely

drain pus from an abscess

b : to exhaust physically or emotionally

2 : to carry away or give passage to a bodily fluid or a discharge from

drain an abscess

the eustachian tube drains the middle ear
—H. G. Armstrong

intransitive verb

: to flow off gradually

blood draining from a wound

drain

noun

medical Definition of drain

: a tube or cylinder usually of absorbent material for drainage of a wound — see cigarette drain

Learn More about drain

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for drain Spanish Central: Translation of drain Nglish: Translation of drain for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of drain for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about drain

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Synonym Discussion of drain

drain

Definition of drain

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DRAIN Defined for English Language Learners

drain

Definition of drain for English Language Learners

drain

Definition of drain for English Language Learners

DRAIN Defined for Kids

drain

Definition of drain for Students

drain

Definition of drain for Students

Medical Dictionary

drain

medical Definition of drain

drain

medical Definition of drain

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