drunken

adjective

drunk·​en ˈdrəŋ-kən 

1

: drunk sense 1

a drunken driver

2

obsolete : saturated with liquid

3

a

: given to habitual excessive use of alcohol

b

: of, relating to, or characterized by intoxication

they come from … broken homes, drunken homes

—P. B. Gilliam

c

: resulting from or as if from intoxication

a drunken brawl

4

: unsteady or lurching as if from alcoholic intoxication

drunkenly adverb

drunkenness

ˈdrəŋ-kən-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• besotted
• blasted [slang]
• blind
• blitzed [slang]
• blotto [slang]
• bombed
• boozy
• canned [slang]
• cockeyed
• crocked
• drunk
• 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]

Examples of drunken in a Sentence

The streets were filled with drunken revelers on New Year's Eve.

He lives in an apartment with his drunken mother.

He fell into a drunken stupor.

A drunken brawl broke out at the bar.

Recent Examples on the Web

Prosecutors say the 45-year-old Massachusetts woman struck O’Keefe with her car in a fit of drunken rage and left him to die outside the home of another Boston cop during a massive snowstorm in January 2022. —Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 22 May 2025

Some were inflicted on drunken patients who slipped on the ice. —Michael Ruiz, FOXNews.com, 22 May 2025

The drunken pushing, kicking and pummeling could last for hours, even days, and had no time limit. —Franz Lidz, New York Times, 21 May 2025

Though a public advocate of Prohibition, Griffith shot his wife in the eye in a drunken rage. —David Allan, CNN Money, 17 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English druncen, from past participle of drincan to drink

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing drunken

• drunken driver
• drunken driving

Rhymes for drunken

• shrunken
• sunken

Kids Definition

drunken

adjective

drunk·​en ˈdrəŋ-kən 

1

a

: drunk entry 2 sense 1

b

: having a habit of drinking too much alcohol

2

a

: resulting from being drunk

a drunken brawl

b

: drunk entry 2 sense 3b

drunkenly adverb

drunkenness

-kən-nəs 

noun

Medical Definition

drunken

adjective

drunk·​en ˈdrəŋ-kən 

1

: drunk sense 1

a drunken driver

2

a

: given to habitual excessive use of alcohol

b

: of, relating to, or characterized by intoxication

drunken parties

c

: resulting from or as if from intoxication

a drunken stupor

drunkenly adverb

drunkenness

-kən-nəs 

noun