as in drunk
a person who makes a habit of getting drunk
one can be a social drinker without turning into an alcoholic
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in bibulous
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of alcoholic
Randy Myers, Mercury News, 24 Dec. 2025
Most notable was that the functional and young adult subtypes represented roughly between 19% to 31% of all alcoholics, while the chronic severe subtype represented only 9%—yet the latter has become the stereotype.
—Sarah Allen Benton, SELF, 23 Dec. 2025
Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
There are also plenty of brands dedicated solely to Shirley Temples, like Just Call Me Shirley, which offers non-alcoholic and alcoholic options, and Dirty Shirley, which offers varying levels of alcoholic beverages.
—Greta Cross, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for alcoholic
Noun
Thunder sang and was a Vietnam veteran and recovering alcoholic while Lightning played keyboards and suffered from bouts of depression.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 24 Dec. 2025
Most notable was that the functional and young adult subtypes represented roughly between 19% to 31% of all alcoholics, while the chronic severe subtype represented only 9%—yet the latter has become the stereotype.
—Sarah Allen Benton, SELF, 23 Dec. 2025
Adjective
Jack Harper, back working in his hometown after flaming out elsewhere, living as the responsible adult with an adorable little niece and her depressed, alcoholic mother, Zoe (Marin Ireland).
—Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 8 Jan. 2026
There are also plenty of brands dedicated solely to Shirley Temples, like Just Call Me Shirley, which offers non-alcoholic and alcoholic options, and Dirty Shirley, which offers varying levels of alcoholic beverages.
—Greta Cross, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for alcoholic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alcoholic
Noun
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When Macy was growing up, her mother worked in a factory and her dad was known as the town drunk.—
Alex Kotlowitz,
The Atlantic,
29 Oct. 2025
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His inability to make hard decisions or abstain from becoming a maudlin, clingy drunk had transformed me from his girlfriend and lover into his mother and disciplinarian.—
Julia Ioffe,
New Yorker,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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From that bibulous beginning, Mr. Epstein became a driving force behind the Library of America, which published its first books in 1979.—
Washington Post,
Washington Post,
5 Feb. 2022
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But how differently would the Iron Lady have handled Brexit or Jean-Claude Juncker, the EU’s bibulous president?—
Philip Delves Broughton,
WSJ,
16 Nov. 2018
Noun
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In short, the proportions of vervets who are teetotal, regular, and heavy drinkers are quite similar to those seen in humans.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
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Coffee drinkers can get their fix with a maple latte at nearby Fika Coffee, or in Grand Marais at Java Moose.—
Julia Sayers Gokhale,
Midwest Living,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The extravagant, dissolute life Prince Albert II of Monaco continues to bolster arguments of those who think that hereditary monarchies should not be allowed to exist in the 21st century.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
18 June 2025
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Nick, a prequel to the original, offers us Carraway’s backstory as a soldier in World War I and a wanderer trying to find his way in a dissolute world.—
Danielle Teller,
People.com,
10 Apr. 2025
Noun
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In the 1880s, a New York heiress with an active and unorthodox social life was declared a habitual drunkard, placed under a legal guardianship, and later confined to an asylum.—
The Editors,
JSTOR Daily,
7 Oct. 2025
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Ben and Anne are written out of the will for being a drunkard and a woman, respectively.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
25 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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There were months of speculation that Sam Levinson’s debauched series—about teenagers getting up to stuff no parent ever wants to know about—wouldn’t be able to get off the ground for a third run thanks to the new star power and busy schedules of its cast (Zendaya!—
Lucy Ford,
Time,
27 Dec. 2025
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The film follows a wealthy socialite and a struggling writer who are thrown together at a debauched party.—
Zac Ntim,
Deadline,
7 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Doctors deal each day with tales of the worried, sullen, skeptical, dissipated, desperate.—
Michael Stein,
BostonGlobe.com,
4 Nov. 2022
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White’s dissipated dark side was no secret to his friends.—
Nancy Bilyeau,
Town & Country,
1 Feb. 2022
Adjective
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McGhee’s humor and anticapitalist critique reminded me of George Saunders and Karen Russell; dopey, affable Abernathy also gets his redemption.—
Erin Somers,
The Atlantic,
6 Jan. 2026
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This Is Spinal Tap stars Christopher Guest, Harry Shearer, and Michael McKean as the core members of Spinal Tap, a dopey metal band with some killer riffs and an unfortunate habit of killing drummers.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Alcoholic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alcoholic. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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