drainer
UK[ˈdreɪnə]US[ˈdreɪnər]
n
a device, such as a rack or board, on which washed dishes, glasses, etc. are placed so that water drains off them.
n
a person or thing that drains something, especially resources or energy.
Morpheme Breakdown
drain
er
drain
to draw off liquid
er
agent/instrument suffix
Etymology
the word "drainer" is a transparent english compound built from the verb "drain" and the agentive suffix "-er". the core verb "drain" originates from old english drēahnian, meaning to strain or filter a liquid, which itself evolved from the proto-germanic root draug-, conceptually linked to the process of becoming dry. the suffix "-er," of germanic origin via latin, is one of the most productive in english for forming nouns that denote a person or tool performing an action. therefore, a "drainer" literally means "that which drains," logically applying to both a utensil that drains water from dishes and, metaphorically, to anything that exhausts resources.
Analysis
Structure: drain (to draw off liquid) + er (agent/instrument suffix)
drain (from old english drēahnian, meaning to strain, filter, derived from proto-germanic draug-, related to dry); er (agentive suffix from old english -ere, from proto-germanic -ārijaz, borrowed from latin -ārius)
Examples
she placed the freshly washed plates on the wooden drainer next to the sink.
the constant administrative paperwork is a real time drainer for the research team.
a colander is a type of drainer used for pasta and vegetables.