drunkenness

1
as in alcoholism
habitual or excessive drinking of intoxicants unfortunately most of his time in college had been devoted to drunkenness and debauchery

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2
as in inebriation
the condition of being drunk officials warning that public drunkenness would not be tolerated, even during Mardi Gras

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of drunkenness The list of allowable grounds includes malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, habitual drunkenness, incompetence, or permanent inability to perform official duties. Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 10 Aug. 2025 Portalatin’s petition seeks to remove Wilder and Saenz using a statute in the Texas Local Government Code that allows for citizens to seek public officials’ removal due to incompetency, official misconduct or drunkenness both on and off duty. Cody Copeland, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drunkenness
Noun
  • Described as semi-autobiographical, the play follows a year in the life of college student Josh (Ben Hirschhorn), whose alcoholism has led him from theater school in New York to the shores of a reservoir in his Colorado hometown.
    Chad Jones, Mercury News, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Other factors also contributed to Adair’s death, including hypertensive cardiovascular disease, and hepatic cirrhosis due to chronic alcoholism.
    Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 11 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Police are looking at speed and possible intoxication as possible factors involved in the crash.
    Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 12 Sep. 2025
  • However, addiction to intoxication makes this disease one of the most common infections around the world.
    Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 10 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Drunkenness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drunkenness. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.

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