sinken

Sinken is a German verb meaning to move downward, to sink, or to decrease. It can describe a physical sinking, such as an object going beneath the surface, as well as a decline in values, levels, or quantities, such as temperatures, prices, or populations.

Etymology and related forms: Sinken is closely related to related Germanic languages, with cognates in English sink and Dutch zinken. The word appears in Old High German and has evolved into the modern forms used today. It is typically used intransitively, describing a subject that itself moves downward or loses value, rather than transferring a direct object.

Grammar and usage: Sinken is an intransitive verb that takes the auxiliary sein in the perfect tense. Present tense forms are ich sinke, du sinkst, er sinkt, wir sinken, ihr sinkt, sie sinken. The simple past (Präteritum) forms are ich sank, du sankst, er sank, wir sanken, ihr sankt, sie sanken. Examples: Die Temperatur sinkt. Die Preise sind gesunken. Das Boot ist gesunken. The verb is commonly used both literally (a sinking ship, the ground sinking) and figuratively (numbers or levels decreasing).

Nuances and related terms: Distinctions exist with other verbs for downward movement. Absinken emphasizes a downward drift or subsidence, often of a body part or a level; absenken is transitive and means to lower something. Untergehen focuses more on the notion of going down, especially the sun or something being ruined. Sinken can also appear in noun form as das Sinken, referring to the act or process of sinking or decreasing, e.g., das Sinken des Meeresspiegels.

See also: sinken, absinken, senken, untergehen.