liquor

1 of 2

noun

li·​quor ˈli-kər 

: a liquid substance: such as

a

: a usually distilled rather than fermented alcoholic beverage

b

: a watery solution of a drug

c

: bath sense 2b(1)

liquor

2 of 2

verb

liquored; liquoring ˈli-k(ə-)riŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to dress (something, such as leather) with oil or grease

2

: to make drunk with alcoholic liquor

—usually used with up

intransitive verb

: to drink alcoholic liquor especially to excess

—usually used with up

Synonyms

Noun

• alcohol
• aqua vitae
• ardent spirits
• booze
• bottle
• drink
• firewater
• grog
• hooch [slang]
• inebriant
• intoxicant
• John Barleycorn
• juice [slang]
• lush [slang]
• moonshine
• potable
• rum
• sauce [slang]
• spirits
• stimulant
• strong drink
• tipple

Verb

• bib
• booze
• drink
• guzzle
• lush (up) [slang]
• soak
• tipple

Examples of liquor in a Sentence

Noun

He drinks beer and wine, but he doesn't drink any hard liquor.

vodka, whiskey, and other liquors

Verb

the men liquored up at the roadhouse and then thought it would be a good idea to go hunting

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Woman wearing long white dress dancing in low light holding bottle of liquor. —Daniella Gray, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 June 2025

The jury did convict Read of operating under the influence of liquor, and she was sentenced to one year of probation. —Matt Lavietes, NBC news, 24 June 2025

Verb

From wine to beer to liquor, from local to international offerings, here are a range of lighter tipples to toast to this summer season. —Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 21 June 2025

Mainland China was mixed, as growth stocks including semiconductor, household appliances, and air freight held up better than liquor, as Kweichow Moutai fell -2.18%, banks, and insurance. —Brendan Ahern, Forbes.com, 19 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English licour, from Anglo-French, from Latin liquor, from liquēre

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

1502, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Phrases Containing liquor

• hold one's liquor
• malt liquor
• pot liquor

Rhymes for liquor

• bicker
• dicker
• flicker
• kicker
• picker
• quicker
• ricker
• sicker
• slicker
• snicker
• sticker
• thicker

Kids Definition

liquor

noun

li·​quor

ˈlik-ər

1

: a liquid substance or solution

dye liquor

2

: a strong alcoholic beverage

Medical Definition

liquor

noun

li·​quor ˈlik-ər 

: a liquid substance: as

a

: a usually distilled rather than fermented alcoholic beverage

b

: a solution of a medicinal substance usually in water compare tincture

c

: bath sense 2b(1)