drinken

Forms

drinken^[1] It is a strong verb (dronk, gedronken), as in Middle Dutch (dranc, dronken, gedronken).^[2][3] Limburg Middle Dutch had drenken.^[4][5]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle Dutch drinken, inherited from Old Dutch drinkan, inherited from Proto-Germanic *drinkaną (“to drink”).^[4][1][6] The same verb is Old Saxon drinkan, Old High German trinkan (modern German trinken), Old Frisian drinka, Old English drincan (modern English drink), Old Norse drekka and Gothic 𐌳𐍂𐌹𐌲𐌺𐌰𐌽 (drigkan).^[4][7][8]

No origin outside Germanic is accepted.^[4][9] The EWN finds no sure cognates in other Indo-European languages and thinks a substrate word likely; it calls a link with Proto-Indo-European *dʰergʰ- (“to become moist”) unlikely.^[4] De Vries reviews two proposals: one compares Sanskrit ध्रजति (dhrájati, “glides, sweeps”) from a root “to draw”, so that drinking would be “taking a draught”, and another starts from a Greek word for a coping or enclosure and the drinking bout in a circle of men; he finds both improbable and also suggests a substrate.^[7] Franck and Van Wijk gave the first proposal as possible, but Van Haeringen thought it so vague that the origin is better called unknown.^[10][9] De Vries and De Tollenaere call the word isolated within Indo-European.^[11]

Earliest recorded meaning

The verb first appears in the Wachtendonck Psalms of the 10th century: an mi sungun thia druncun uuin, “those who drank wine sang about me”.^[6][4][12] Willeram's paraphrase of about 1100 has ich drank ouch thar minen win mit minero milicho, “I also drank my wine with my milk”.^[6][4]

Semantic evolution

In Middle Dutch the infinitive was also a noun: in drinkene ende in etene “in drinking and eating” appears at Ghent in 1230–1231, and drenken meaning “drink” in a Limburg text of about 1200.^[4][5] A Dordrecht account of 1286 pays for drinks taken together at an inn.^[5] From 1265 the verb was used figuratively, of drinking the wine of love or the cup of God's wrath.^[5] Gilde drinken was to hold a guild feast (1299).^[2]

Later phrases include drinking blood to seal a pact (1726) and drinking the cup of humiliation to the dregs (1864).^[13] Drinken als een Tempelier “to drink like a Templar”, to drink to excess, is found in Huygens and has parallels in German and French.^[14] The Southern Dutch drinken aan iets “drink to something” follows French boire à.^[15] In Surinamese Dutch one also drinks soup or porridge and tablets, and Hindustani speakers use the verb for smoking.^[3]

French dialects borrowed the verb as trinquer, drinquer “to drink heavily; to clink glasses”, which passed into Basque, and it went into Negerhollands, Berbice Dutch (dronggi “to drown”), Sranan Tongo dringi and Aukan dingii.^[16][1] Franck and Van Wijk derived French trinquer and Italian trincare from German instead.^[10] Afrikaans has drink.^[1]

Timeline

• 901–1000 – Druncun uuin “drank wine” appears in the Wachtendonck Psalms.^[6][12]
• c. 1100 – Willeram writes ich drank ouch thar minen win.^[6]
• 1230–1231 – In drinkene ende in etene is recorded at Ghent.^[4]
• 1240 – The Limburg glossary of Bernardus has drenken for Latin bibere.^[4][5]
• 1299 – Gilde drinken “to hold a guild feast” is recorded.^[2]
• 1645 – Eeten ende drincken “food and drink” appears as a noun phrase.^[13]
• 1726 – Drinking blood together seals an oath.^[13]

Meanings

Verb

1. (transitive, intransitive) to drink, to take a liquid into the mouth and swallow it: Zij drinkt elke ochtend twee koppen thee.^[17][1][18]
2. (intransitive) to drink alcohol, especially too much and habitually.^[1][18]
3. (transitive) to bring into a state by drinking: iemand onder tafel drinken, to drink someone under the table.^[17]

Noun

1. (het drinken) drink, something to drink: Neem genoeg drinken mee.^[17][1][18]

Word family

• drinkbaar
• drinker
• drinkebroer
• drinkgelag
• drinkgeld
• drinkwater
• drinkhoorn
• drinkfles
• drinkfontein
• drinkrietje
• afdrinken
• opdrinken
• verdrinken
• toedrinken

Related words

• drank
• drink
• dronk
• dronken
• drenken
• German trinken

Usage notes

Dat is eten en drinken voor hem means that it costs him no effort.^[17] Iemands bloed wel kunnen drinken is to hate someone intensely.^[17]

References

1. ^ a b c d e f g h Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c Verwijs, Eelco; Verdam, Jacob (1885–1929), Middelnederlandsch woordenboek, 11 vols., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff; gtb.ivdnt.org
3. ^ a b Donselaar, J. van (1989), Woordenboek van het Surinaams-Nederlands, Muiderberg: Coutinho
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Philippa, Marlies; Debrabandere, Frans; Quak, Arend; Schoonheim, Tanneke; Sijs, Nicoline van der (2003–2009), Etymologisch woordenboek van het Nederlands, 4 vols., Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press; online via etymologiebank.nl
5. ^ a b c d e Pijnenburg, W. J. J., et al. (2001), Vroegmiddelnederlands woordenboek: woordenboek van het Nederlands van de dertiende eeuw in hoofdzaak op basis van het Corpus-Gysseling, Leiden: Instituut voor Nederlandse Lexicologie; gtb.ivdnt.org
6. ^ a b c d e Oudnederlands Woordenboek (2009–), Instituut voor de Nederlandse Taal, Leiden; gtb.ivdnt.org
7. ^ a b Vries, Jan de (1971), Nederlands etymologisch woordenboek, Leiden: Brill
8. ^ Veen, P. A. F. van; Sijs, Nicoline van der (1997), Etymologisch woordenboek: de herkomst van onze woorden, 2nd ed., Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Lexicografie
9. ^ a b Haeringen, C. B. van (1936), Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal: Supplement, 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
10. ^ a b Franck, Johannes; Wijk, Nicolaas van (1912), Franck's Etymologisch woordenboek der Nederlandsche taal, 2nd ed., 's-Gravenhage: Nijhoff
11. ^ Vries, Jan de; Tollenaere, Félicien de (2004), Etymologisch woordenboek: onze woorden, hun oorsprong en ontwikkeling, 23rd ed., Utrecht: Het Spectrum, p. 111
12. ^ a b Sijs, Nicoline van der (2001), Chronologisch woordenboek: de ouderdom en herkomst van onze woorden en betekenissen, Amsterdam / Antwerpen: Veen
13. ^ a b c Vries, Matthias de; Winkel, L. A. te, et al. (1882–1998), Woordenboek der Nederlandsche Taal, 29 vols., 's-Gravenhage / Leiden: Nijhoff / Sijthoff / SDU; supplement 2001; gtb.ivdnt.org
14. ^ Stoett, F. A. (1923–1925), Nederlandsche spreekwoorden, spreekwijzen, uitdrukkingen en gezegden, 4th ed., 3 vols., Zutphen: Thieme
15. ^ Vreese, Willem de (1899), Gallicismen in het Zuidnederlandsch, Gent: Siffer
16. ^ Sijs, Nicoline van der (2010), Nederlandse woorden wereldwijd, Den Haag: Sdu; with additions from the Uitleenwoordenbank (2015)
17. ^ a b c d e Van Dale Groot woordenboek hedendaags Nederlands (2014), Utrecht / Antwerpen: Van Dale Uitgevers
18. ^ a b c WikiWoordenboek (Dutch Wiktionary), nl.wiktionary.org