Tank Definition

tăngk
tanked, tanking, tanks
noun
tanks
In India, a natural or artificial pool or pond used for water storage.
Webster's New World
A heavily armored, self-propelled combat vehicle armed with guns and moving on full tractor treads.
Webster's New World
A tank top.
American Heritage
Any large container for liquid or gas.
A gasoline tank, a swimming tank.
Webster's New World
A jail cell, esp. one for new prisoners charged with misdemeanors.
Webster's New World
Synonyms:
verb
tanked
To put, store, or process in a tank.
Webster's New World
To fail or go into a sharp decline.
Webster's New World
To lose, esp. as a result of a lack of effort.
Webster's New World
To lose (a game, match, etc.) deliberately or due to a lack of effort.
Webster's New World

To fail or fall (often used in describing the economy or the stock market); to degenerate or decline rapidly; to plummet.

Wiktionary
idiom
in the tank
  • In reserve:

    a runner who didn't have enough in the tank to hold the lead.

  • In a state of decline or failure:

    Stocks have been in the tank for months.

American Heritage
go in the tank
  • to lose or fail badly or on purpose
Webster's New World
tank up
  • to supply with or get a full tank of fuel
  • to drink much liquor
Webster's New World

Other Word Forms of Tank

Noun

Singular:
tank
Plural:
tanks

Idioms, Phrasal Verbs Related to Tank

Origin of Tank

  • Partly from Gujarati tānkh cistern (from Sanskrit taḍāgaḥ pond) (perhaps of Dravidian origin) and partly from Portuguese tanque reservoir (variant of estanque) (from estancar to dam up) (from Vulgar Latin stanticāre stanch1)

    From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition

  • From Portuguese tanque (“tank, liquid container"), originally from Indian vernacular for a large artificial water reservoir, cistern, pool, etc., for example, Gujarati ટાંકી (ṭāṅkÄ«), or Marathi [Devanagari?] [script?] (take). Compare the Arabic verb استنقع (istanqáʕa, “to become stagnant, to stagnate").

    From Wiktionary

  • In the sense of armoured vehicle, to disguise their nature, prototypes were described as tanks for carrying water (1915).

    From Wiktionary

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