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drown
drown in self-pity
To be entirely consumed by sorrow, self-deprecation, or other negative emotions to the point of self-indulgence and/or paralysis. It's hard to help someone who would rather drown in self-pity than find a solution to their problems.
a drowning man will clutch at a straw
Someone who is desperate will try to use anything for help, even if it is really no help at all. Facing the possibility that his marriage might be over, John began visiting psychics to help him decide what to do. A drowning man will clutch at a straw.
drown in something
1. . Lit. to be asphyxiated in some liquid. Wouldn't you hate to drown in that nasty, smelly water? lam not choosy about what I don't want to drown in.
2. Fig. to experience an overabundance of something. We are just drowning in cabbage this year. Our garden is full of it. They were drowning in bills, not money to pay them with.
drown one's troubles
and drown one's sorrowsFig. to try to forget one's problems by drinking a lot of alcohol. Bill is in the bar, drowning his troubles. Jane is at home, drowning her sorrows.
drown someone in something
Fig. to inundate someone with something. (See also
drown in something.)
I will drown you in money and fine clothes. Mike drowned the nightclub singer in fancy jewels and furs. drown (someone or an animal) in something
to cause someone or an animal to die of asphyxiation in a liquid. He accidentally drowned the cat in the bathtub. She drowned herself in the lake.
drown someone (or an animal) out
[for a flood] to drive someone or an animal away from home. The high waters almost drowned the farmers out last year. The water drowned out the fields.
drown someone or something out
[for a sound] to be so loud that someone or something cannot be heard. The noise of the passing train drowned out our conversation. The train drowned us out.
A drowning man will clutch at a straw.
Prov. When you are desperate, you will look for anything that might help you, even if it cannot help you very much. Scott thinks this faith healer will cure his baldness. A drowning man will clutch at a straw.
If you're born to be hanged, then you'll never be drowned.
Prov. If you escape one disaster, it must be because you are destined for a different kind of disaster. (Sometimes used to warn someone who has escaped drowning against gloating over good luck.) When their ship was trapped in a terrible storm, Ellen told her husband that she feared they would die. "Don't worry," he replied with a yawn, "if you're born to be hanged, then you'll never be drowned."
drown out something
also drown something out to make it impossible to hear something The plane was flying so low, the roar of its engines drowned out our conversation.
drown your sorrows
to drink a lot of alcohol because you want to stop feeling sad
Frank insisted that I accompany him to his house, where I could drown my sorrows. Usage notes: sometimes said about eating or drinking something other than alcohol: I decided I'd drown my sorrows in a bucket of chocolate ice cream.
drown your sorrows
to drink a lot of alcohol because you want to stop feeling sad I've got a bottle of whiskey here - shall we stay in and drown our sorrows?
look like a drowned rat
to be very wet, especially because you have been in heavy rain I had to cycle home in the rain and came in looking like a drowned rat.
drown one's sorrows
Drink liquor to escape one's unhappiness. For example, After the divorce, she took to drowning her sorrows at the local bar. The notion of drowning in drink dates from the late 1300s.
drown out
Overwhelm with a louder sound, as in Their cries were drowned out by the passing train. [Early 1600s]
like a drowned rat
Also, wet as a drowned rat. Soaking wet and utterly bedraggled, as in When she came in out of the rain she looked like a drowned rat. This simile appeared in Latin nearly 2,000 years ago, and in English about the year 1500.
drown out
v. To muffle or mask some sound with a louder sound: I turned up my TV in order to drown out the noise coming from next door. The protesters drowned the speaker out.
drown (one's) sorrow
/sorrows To try to forget one's troubles by drinking alcohol.