Ink1, n.
[O. Eng. enke, inke, O. D. enckt, inckt, N. D. inkt, O. Fr. enque, N. Fr. encre, O. It. incostro, N. It. inchiostro, Pr. encaust, from Lat. encaustum, the purple-red ink with which the Roman emperors signed their edicts, Gr. ἔγκαυστον, from ἐγκαυστός, burnt in, encaustic, from ἐγκαίειν, to burn in, to paint in encaustic, i. e., with colors mixed with wax, Lat. encausta pingere. See ENCAUSTIC.
- A colored fluid, usually black, used in writing, printing, and the like.
- A pigment. [Rare.]
Indian ink, a composition of lampblack and size or glue: it is formed into solid cakes, and is used by moistening it with water, being applied with a small brush, as in using water colors. It received its name as being first obtained from China through India. As formerly supposed to be prepared from the ink of the cuttle-fish or sepia, it was called sepia. — Printing ink, a kind of ink used in printing, and made by boiling linseed oil, and burning it for a short time, and mixing it with lampblack, with an addition of soap and resin. — Sympathetic ink, a fluid used in writing, and of such a nature that what is written remains invisible till the action of some reagent upon the characters makes it visible.