sog n.

Middle English soken, from Old English socian (intransitive) "to soak, to lie in liquid," from Proto-Germanic *sukon (source also of West Flemish soken), possibly from PIE root *seue- (2) "to take liquid" (see sup (v.2)). The Old English word is a secondary form of sucan (past participle socen) "to suck" (see suck (v.)).

The transitive sense of "drench, permeate, penetrate thoroughly by saturation" is from mid-14c.; that of "steep or cause to lie in liquid" is from early 15c. The meaning "take up by absorption" is from 1550s; that of "drink immoderately" is by 1680s. The slang meaning "overcharge extortionately, tax too heavily" is recorded by 1895. Related: Soaked; soaken (1650s, only in the "intoxicated" sense); soaking.

As a noun, "a soaking," mid-15c., from the verb. Soaking as a noun is from mid-15c. Old soaker "veteran" at any craft or activity is by 1580s and apparently was not connected with the drinking sense, but the image is unclear.

"turf, slice of earth with grass on it," mid-15c., sodde, apparently from Middle Dutch sode "turf," or Middle Low German sode, both related to Old Frisian satha "sod" and all of uncertain origin. Perhaps the notion is water saturation and the group is related to sog. Colloquial the (old) sod "one's native country," especially if it is Ireland, is from 1812.

"horoughly wet, damp and heavy from being soaked," 1722, perhaps with -y (2) + dialectal sog "bog, swamp" (q.v.) or its verb sog "become soaked" (15c.), both of which are of unknown origin. Related: Soggily; sogginess.