What’s the past tense of “sink”?
To sink, which is, “if a boat sinks or if someone or something sinks it, it disappears below the surface of a mass of water”.
A sink is also a noun, in this sense, “a sink is the same as a washbasin or, basin.” For example, a kitchen or bathroom sink.
Forms of the irregular verb, sink
| Present | Past | Future | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple | I sink | I sank | I will sink |
| Continuous | I am sinking | I was sinking | I will be sinking |
| Perfect | I have sunk | I had sunk | I will have sunk |
| Perfect Continuous | I have been sinking | I had been sinking | I will have been sinking |
How to use the past tense of sink
Sink belongs to the class of irregular verbs with 3 different forms, like these other verbs with a similar conjugation pattern. See the chart:
| Base verb | Past tense | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| sing | sang | sung |
| ring | rang | rung |
| sink | sank | sunk |
| shrink | shrank | shrunk |
Sank or sunk? What’s the difference?
| Word Form | Examples |
|---|---|
| Past Tense | She sank into depression. (past tense) |
| Past Participle | His eyes have sunk in. (past participle) |
Technically, sunk is the participle form of the verb sink, which means it joins with an auxiliary verb to convey tense, as is shown in the second sentence, i.e., ‘have sunk‘. The past participle also forms the passive voice, which takes on a sentence object. The simple past, on the other hand, does not require a helping verb, and can function ‘as is’, in sentences, so to speak.
Examples of sink in the present tense
| Word Form | Examples |
|---|---|
| Other | A fresh egg will sink and an old egg will float.
If your voice sinks, it becomes quieter. When they came to build the southern spire the foundations began to sink. She’d sometimes sink into depression. He sinks the needle into my arm. |
See examples of sank in the past tense:
| Word Form | Examples |
|---|---|
| Other | That night he sank into a deep coma.
My heart sank because I thought he was going to dump me for another girl. Her spirits sank lower and lower. Her voice sank, and he moved closer to catch what she was saying. Her spirits sank lower and lower. |
“sink’s” past tenses, associate “sank” with a single action (“it sank quickly”) and “sunk” with a completed state (“it had sunk to the bottom”).
Examples of the past participle, sunk
| Word Form | Examples |
|---|---|
| Other | Her voice had sunk to a whisper.
Bulgaria’s economy has sunk into chaos. Share prices would have sunk–hurting small and big investors. His eyes have sunk in. Her eyes were sunk deep into their sockets. |
Synonyms of ‘sink’
- capsize
- descend
- decline
- go down
- plunge
- drop
- disappear
- drown
- submerge
- plummet
- dip
- overturn
Origin of the word sink
Old English sincan; related to Old Norse sökkva to sink, Gothic siggan, Old High German sincan, Swedish sjunka.
Practice: sank vs. sunk
The heavy ship ______ after hitting the iceberg.
The treasure is believed to have ______ with the galleon.
My heart ______ when I heard the bad news.
Many ships have ______ in these treacherous waters over the years.
After the large meal, he ______ into the comfortable armchair.
FAQs
What is the simple past of sink?
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What is the past participle of sink?
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When do you use sank?
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When do you use sunk?
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Can sunk be used alone (no helper)?
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Yash, D. "How to Use Sank vs. Sunk (Irregular Verb Forms)." Grammarflex, Aug 24, 2025, https://grammarflex.com/sank-vs-sunk/.
