sinkt

Sinkt is the third-person singular present tense form of the German verb sinken. The verb sinken generally means to go down, to submerge, or to decline in a figurative sense such as prices, numbers, or situations. In everyday use it describes a downward or diminishing motion or state rather than an intentional action by someone causing it.

As an intransitive verb, sinken does not take a direct object. It can be used with directional phrases or contexts that specify where or why something goes down, for example: Das Boot sinkt langsam (The boat is sinking slowly) or Die Preise sinken (Prices are falling). The present indicative forms are ich sinke, du sinkst, er/sie/es sinkt, wir sinken, ihr sinkt, sie sinken. The simple past (Präteritum) forms are ich sank, du sankst, er/sie/es sank, wir sanken, ihr sankt, sie sanken. The perfect tense uses the auxiliary ist: Das Wasser ist gesunken. Related participles are sinkend (present participle) and gesunken (past participle). Future forms include wird sinken, and the subjunctive mood can be expressed as würde sinken.

Usage notes and nuances: sinken covers physical submersion and abstract declines, such as a sinking economy or a sinking ship compared with debris or sediment settling. It contrasts with senken, which means to lower or reduce something intentionally by an agent.

Etymology and related forms: sinken is of Germanic origin, with cognates in other Germanic languages (for example Dutch zinken). It is part of a broader family of verbs describing downward movement, often contrasted with holm or raise-type verbs in German.