Meaning

noun a liquid used for printing or writing or drawing

noun dark protective fluid ejected into the water by cuttlefish and other cephalopods

verb append one's signature to

originFrom Middle English ynke, from Old French enque, from Latin encaustum (“purple ink used by Roman emperors to sign documents”), from Ancient Greek ἔγκαυστον (énkauston, “burned-in”), from ἐν (en, “in”) + καίω (kaíō, “burn”). In this sense, displaced native Old English blæc (“ink”, literally “black”). Sense four refers to the ink used in newspapers.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0