tank

tank
{{11}}tank (n.) 1610s, "pool or lake for irrigation or drinking water," a word originally brought by the Portuguese from India, ultimately from Gujarati tankh "cistern, underground reservoir for water," Marathi tanken, or tanka "reservoir of water, tank."
Perhaps from Skt. tadaga-m "pond, lake pool," and reinforced in later sense of "large artificial container for liquid" (1690) by Port. tanque "reservoir," from estancar "hold back a current of water," from V.L. *stanticare (see STANCH (Cf. stanch)). But others say the Portuguese word is the source of the Indian ones.
Meaning "fuel container" is recorded from 1902. Military use originated 1915, partly as a code word, partly because they looked like benzene tanks. They were first used in action at Pozieres ridge, on the Western Front, Sept. 15, 1916. Slang meaning "detention cell" is from 1912.
{{12}}tank (v.) "to lose or fail," 1976, originally in tennis jargon, but said there to be from boxing, from TANK (Cf. tank) (n.) in some sense. Related: Tanked; tanking. Adjective tanked "drunk" is from 1893.

Etymology dictionary. 2014.

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  • tank — tank …   Dictionnaire des rimes

  • Tank — Tank …   Deutsch Wörterbuch

  • tank — [ tɑ̃k ] n. m. • 1857; mot angl. « réservoir »; tanque « citerne pour se baigner, aux Indes » 1617; mot port. 1 ♦ Citerne d un navire pétrolier. Cylindre métallique de grandes dimensions utilisé comme réservoir dans certaines industries. Tank à… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Tank — Tank  игровой автомат, работающий при опускании жетонов. Представляет собой простую аркадную игру для двух игроков. Выпущен 5 ноября 1974 года компанией Kee Games, дочерним предприятием Особенности Tank  первый игровой автомат, использовавший для …   Википедия

  • tank — [tæŋk] noun in the tank FINANCE likely to fail and lose money: • With the junk bond market in the tank, smarter investors are trying to pick up other investments • Sales can t keep going up at that rate, but that doesn t mean the industry is… …   Financial and business terms

  • tank — [taŋk] n. [ TANK sense 1 < Gujarati tānkh; other senses < or infl. by Sp & Port tanque, aphetic < estanque, a pool, stoppage of flow < estancar, to stop the flow of < VL * stanticare, to STAUNCH] 1. Archaic in India, a natural or… …   English World dictionary

  • Tank — (t[a^][ng]k), n. [Pg. tanque, L. stangum a pool; or perhaps of East Indian origin. Cf. {Stank}, n.] 1. A large basin or cistern; an artificial receptacle for liquids. [1913 Webster] 2. A pond, pool, or small lake, natural or artificial. [Webster… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • Tank — Sm std. (18. Jh.) Entlehnung. Entlehnt aus ne. tank, das mit port. tanque auf hindī tānkh Wasserbehälter zurückgeht. Es war zuvor schon im 17. Jh. in deutschen Reisebeschreibungen erwähnt worden. Die Übertragung auf gepanzerte Kraftwagen erfolgte …   Etymologisches Wörterbuch der deutschen sprache

  • Tank — Tank, Kampf oder Sturmwagen mit eigener Fahrbahn und Raupenantrieb. Aus den Streit und Sichelwagen des Altertums entwickelten sich im Mittelalter die Turmwagen zum Berennen von Festungen. Leonardo da Vinci, Roberto Valturio und Berthold… …   Lexikon der gesamten Technik

  • tank up — (something) to fill the fuel container of a vehicle with gas or other fuel. There won t be any gas stations for miles and miles, so we d better tank up now. It s always a good idea to tank up a rented car before you return it …   New idioms dictionary

  • Tank — »(meist transportabler) Flüssigkeitsbehälter (z. B. für Benzin)«, früher auch in der übertragenen Bedeutung »Panzerwagen« (ursprünglich als Deckname) gebraucht: Das seit dem 17. Jh. bezeugte Fremdwort ist in beiden Bedeutungen aus engl. tank… …   Das Herkunftswörterbuch

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