DRUNK Definition & Meaning

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drunk

[ druhngk ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

adjective

being in a temporary state in which one's physical and mental faculties are impaired by an excess of alcohol; intoxicated:
The wine made him drunk.
Synonyms: ,
Antonyms:
overcome or dominated by a strong feeling or emotion:
drunk with power;
drunk with joy.
pertaining to or caused by intoxication or intoxicated persons; drunken:
The semester before I dropped out was just a blur of drunk hookups and missed classes.

noun

an intoxicated person:
A couple of rude, grabby drunks ruined the parade for her.
Disparaging and Offensive. a habitual drinker of alcohol who is frequently intoxicated.
a spree; drinking party:
We rolled back into town after a four-day drunk, looking like hell.

verb

past participle and nonstandard simple past tense of drink.

drunk

/ ��ʌŋ�� /

adjective

intoxicated with alcohol to the extent of losing control over normal physical and mental functions
overwhelmed by strong influence or emotion
drunk with joy

noun

a person who is drunk or drinks habitually to excess
informal.
a drinking bout

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Usage Note

See drink ( def ).

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Confusables Note

Both drunk and drunken are used as modifiers before nouns naming persons: a drunk customer; a drunken merrymaker. Only drunk occurs after a linking verb: He was not drunk, just jovial. The actor was drunk with success. The modifier drunk in legal language describes a person whose blood contains more than the legally allowed percentage of alcohol: Drunk drivers go to jail. Drunken, not drunk, is almost always the form used with nouns that do not name persons: drunken arrogance; a drunken free-for-all. In such uses it normally has the sense “pertaining to, caused by, or marked by intoxication.” Drunken is also idiomatic in such expressions as drunken bum or drunken sailor.

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Other 51�Թ� Forms

half-drunk adjective
�ܲ�·��ܲ԰� adjective

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of drunk¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English drunken, Old English druncen, past participle of drincan “to swallow liquid, drink”; drink

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51�Թ� History and Origins

Origin of drunk¹

Old English druncen, past participle of drincan to drink; see drink

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

For example, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said this week that the visa of a University of Minnesota student was revoked in March because of a 2023 drunk driving incident in which he pleaded guilty.

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What better person to put in charge of the armed forces and its 4,000 nuclear weapons than a loutish drunk?

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Half a year before Justin died, she crashed while driving drunk with him in the back seat, unbuckled.

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Her behavior on camera was "provocative and, like, lusty," she admitted, but she said she was "not drunk, not high, not on anything" when it was filmed.

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Sun was questioned at the scene and ultimately booked on suspicion of drunk driving and vehicular manslaughter.

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