ink

1 of 2

noun

ˈiŋk 

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

inkiness

ˈiŋ-kē-nəs 

noun

inky

ˈiŋ-kē 

adjective

ink

2 of 2

verb

inked; inking; inks

transitive verb

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 in

carefully 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

3

informal : tattoo

… got himself an elaborate tattoo, his first, inked along his right shoulder …

—S. L. Price

Kaufman plans on inking a tat to memorialize his accident.

—Micah Abrams

His heavily muscled arms are inked shoulder to wrist.

—Eve Conant

Synonyms

Verb

• autograph
• sign
• subscribe

Examples 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

Noun

Investment into women’s sports continues to explode as soccer clubs are selling control shares for nine figures and young phenoms ink endorsement deals unheard of just a few years ago. —Jason Clinkscales, Sportico.com, 4 Nov. 2024

Starbucks order for ‘Air-Inn’ Remember when the Starbucks barista would strangely misspell even the most common names in large black ink on the coffee cups? —Andrew Torgan, CNN, 4 Nov. 2024

Verb

Signaling its commitment to the Far East, last November the French label opened a franchised unit in Singapore and is planning to ink more deals with local partners to ramp up its footprint in the region. —Martino Carrera, WWD, 4 Nov. 2024

This bump in resolution can allow for more efficient allocation of resources during extreme weather events, which is particularly important for cities, says Johan Mathe, co-founder and CTO of the company, which earlier this year inked deals with the Philippines and the island nation of Tuvalu. —Harry Booth, TIME, 4 Nov. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English enke, from Anglo-French encre, enke, from Late Latin encaustum, from neuter of Latin encaustus burned in, from Greek enkaustos, verbal of enkaiein to burn in — more at encaustic

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1562, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ink

• drowning/awash in red ink
• india ink
• Indian ink
• ink blot
• ink in
• ink-jet
• ink-jet printer
• ink pad
• invisible ink
• red ink

Kids Definition

ink

1 of 2 noun

ˈiŋk 

1

: a usually liquid material for writing or printing

2

: the black protective secretion of a cephalopod

ink

2 of 2 verb

1

: to put ink on

2

: to write or draw in ink

inker noun