drunk

1 of 3

past participle of drink

drunk

2 of 3

adjective

ˈdrəŋk 

1

a

: having the faculties impaired by alcohol

b

: having a level of alcohol in the blood that exceeds a maximum prescribed by law

legally drunk

2

: dominated by an intense feeling

drunk with rage

3

: relating to, caused by, or characterized by intoxication : drunken

drunk driving

drunk

3 of 3

noun

1

: a period of drinking to intoxication or of being intoxicated

a 2-day drunk

2

: one who is drunk

especially : drunkard

Synonyms

Adjective

• besotted
• blasted [slang]
• blind
• blitzed [slang]
• blotto [slang]
• bombed
• boozy
• canned [slang]
• cockeyed
• crocked
• drunken
• fried
• gassed
• hammered [slang]
• high
• impaired
• inebriate
• inebriated
• intoxicated
• juiced [slang]
• lit
• lit up
• loaded [slang]
• looped
• oiled [slang]
• pickled
• pie-eyed
• plastered
• potted [slang]
• ripped [slang]
• sloshed [slang]
• smashed [slang]
• sottish
• soused
• sozzled
• squiffed
• squiffy
• stewed
• stiff
• stinking [slang]
• stoned
• tanked [slang]
• tiddly [chiefly British]
• tight
• tipsy
• wasted [slang]
• wet
• wiped out [slang]

Noun

• alcoholic
• alkie [slang]
• alky
• boozehound
• boozer
• dipsomaniac
• drinker
• drunkard
• inebriate
• juicehead [slang]
• juicer [slang]
• lush
• rummy
• soak
• soaker
• sot
• souse
• tippler
• toper
• tosspot

Examples of drunk in a Sentence

Adjective

I don't like being around drunk people.

She was so drunk that she could barely walk.

I was drunk and couldn't think straight.

We got drunk on wine.

Noun

you can't trust anything that old drunk says

after a weeklong drunk he was unable to remember anything

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

There’s even a skill tree for drinking alcohol, and one of the unlockable perks allows Henry to be 20-percent quieter when drunk. —George Yang, Rolling Stone, 3 Feb. 2025

After three hours together, one of my friends was extremely drunk. —Harriette Cole, The Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2025

Noun

Liquor stores would have to pay for accidents caused by drunks. —William Baldwin, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2025

Jake Foulger Photo: Bravo/Laurent Bassett/Bravo Deckhand Below Deck Season 9 — A drunk who was always getting his naughty bits out, Jake even had an aborted threeway with Fraser Olender and Rayna Lindsey. —Brian Moylan, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English drunke, alteration of drunken

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1779, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing drunk

• (as) drunk as a lord
• (as) drunk as a skunk
• blind drunk
• drunk driver
• drunk driving
• drunk tank
• punch-drunk
• punch-drunk syndrome
• roaring drunk
• stinking drunk

Kids Definition

drunk

1 of 3

past participle of drink

drunk

2 of 3 adjective

ˈdrəŋk 

1

: having consumed alcohol to the point that normal thinking or acting becomes difficult or impossible

2

: controlled by some feeling as if under the influence of alcohol

drunk with power

3

a

: drunken sense 2a

b

: occurring while drunk

drunk driving

drunk

3 of 3 noun

1

a

: a person who is drunk

b

: drunkard

2

: a period of drinking too much : spree

Medical Definition

drunk

1 of 3

past part of drink

drunk

2 of 3 adjective

ˈdrəŋk 

1

: having the faculties impaired by alcohol

2

: of, relating to, or caused by intoxication : drunken

convicted of drunk driving

—Time

drunk

3 of 3 noun

1

: a period of drinking to intoxication or of being intoxicated

2

: one who is drunk

especially : drunkard