verb

einschenken

pour

Definition & meaning

einschenken means to pour a drink into a glass, cup, or other container.

It can also mean to pour a drink for someone or to serve someone a drink. With a reflexive pronoun, sich einschenken means to pour oneself a drink.

Sie schenkt Wasser ein. — “She pours water.”
Er schenkt sich einen Tee ein. — “He pours himself a tea.”

Grammar & Word origin

einschenken is a separable German verb: in many sentences, ein moves to the end. Its past participle is eingeschenkt, and it forms the perfect tense with haben.

The word combines ein (“in”) and schenken (“to give” or, in this context, “to pour”). Literally, it suggests pouring something in.

Synonyms & antonyms

eingießen — “to pour in”; very close in meaning, though it can refer to liquids other than drinks.
nachschenken — “to pour more” or “to refill”; used when someone already has a drink.
servieren — “to serve”; broader than einschenken, since it can refer to serving food as well as drinks.
ausgießen — “to pour out”; an opposite in situations where liquid is being emptied from a container, rather than poured into one. There is no exact antonym for einschenken.