drainer
Meaning
a device, such as a rack or board, on which washed dishes, glasses, etc. are placed so that water drains off them.
a person or thing that drains something, especially resources or energy.
Structure
Usage
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.
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
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)