to sink / to score
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to sink
To cause something, especially a ship, to sink so that it goes below the surface of the water.
Im Zweiten Weltkrieg wurden viele Schiffe im Atlantik versenkt.
In the Second World War, many ships were sunk in the Atlantic.
'Versenken' (to sink) is an inseparable verb. The prefix 'ver-' stays firmly attached to the stem 'senken' (to lower; to make sink) in all conjugations and sentence forms.
Er versenkte den Ball zielsicher im Korb.
He scored the ball confidently in the basket.
You can easily recognize the meaning of 'versenken' (to sink / to score) from the object: with ships, it is about sinking; with balls, about sports; with money, about a bad investment; and with 'sich' (oneself), about concentration.
Der Pirat wollte das Handelsschiff versenken.
The pirate wanted to sink the merchant ship.
To express intense concentration, the verb is used reflexively with the preposition 'in' and the accusative: 'sich in etwas versenken' (to immerse oneself in something).
Ich könnte mich den ganzen Tag in diese Musik versenken.
I could immerse myself in this music all day.
In a sports context, 'versenken' (to score) is a colloquial word for 'treffen' (to hit). It is often used to describe a particularly confident or important score.
Mit diesem Wurf hat sie den Sieg für ihre Mannschaft versenkt.
With that throw, she scored the win for her team.
to meet / to hit
'treffen' and 'versenken' can both mean in sports that a target is successfully reached. 'treffen' is more general: you can hit a goal, a target, or a ball. It mainly says that the shot, throw, or strike reaches the target. 'versenken' fits more colloquially when a ball really lands in the goal, basket, or hole. It often sounds like: The attempt was successful and counts. In short: You hit a target, but you 'versenken' a ball when it goes in.
Meine Kollegin versenkt den letzten Wurf im Korb und gewinnt das Spiel.
My colleague sinks the final shot into the basket and wins the game.
Beim Training trifft Max den Ball genau mit dem rechten Fuß.
During training, Max hits the ball cleanly with his right foot.