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
Robert Lang, Deadline, 5 Jan. 2026
Catt hires Paul Garcia, a recovering alcoholic recently out of prison for petty fraud, to manage her apartment buildings, becomes romantically involved with him, and then gets embroiled in trying to extricate him from the pincers of the criminal-justice system and debt.
—Rosa Lyster, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Guests will consume alcoholic beverages responsibly.
—Ed Masley, AZCentral.com, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for alcoholic
Noun
Song Sung Blue centers on Mike Sardina (Jackman), a recovering alcoholic, Vietnam veteran and small-time musician working as a mechanic to support his love for performing, and Claire Stengl (Hudson), a struggling single mother who moonlights as a Patsy Cline impersonator.
—Robert Lang, Deadline, 5 Jan. 2026
Catt hires Paul Garcia, a recovering alcoholic recently out of prison for petty fraud, to manage her apartment buildings, becomes romantically involved with him, and then gets embroiled in trying to extricate him from the pincers of the criminal-justice system and debt.
—Rosa Lyster, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Adjective
Like with all of her characters, Turner created an expansive backstory for Zara, who is trapped in a toxic relationship with her alcoholic mother.
—Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Guests will consume alcoholic beverages responsibly.
—Ed Masley, AZCentral.com, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for alcoholic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alcoholic
Noun
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The movie follows a group of petty cheats, liars and drunks who are duped by nefarious opportunists who visit their crumbling town.—
John Penner,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Jan. 2026
-
On average, one person is killed around every 42 minutes in a drunk-driving accident, totaling more than 12,000 deaths each year.—
Marina Johnson,
Louisville Courier Journal,
31 Dec. 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
-
The Mazzer Philos is not for every coffee drinker.—
Noah Kaufman,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
20 Jan. 2026
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This might be a novel expression for many a drinker in Asia.—
Brad Japhe,
Forbes.com,
19 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
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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These laws also applied to habitual drunkards, the mentally ill and others determined to be dangerous to the public.—
Morgan Marietta,
The Conversation,
15 Jan. 2026
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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
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
-
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
-
Austen wrings a great deal of humor from Lady Bertram’s dopey languor.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Jan. 2026
-
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
Cite this Entry
“Alcoholic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alcoholic. Accessed 27 Jan. 2026.
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