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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of drunkenness
He was detained again in 2017 for an assault in Queens, then six months later arrested for suspicion of public drunkenness in Georgia.
—
Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 1 Mar. 2026
He was twice arrested in 2017, first for assault in Queens, and then in George for suspicion of public drunkenness.
—Jami Ganz, Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2026
LaBeouf has had several run-ins with the law during his career, including an early 2017 New York arrest for public drunkenness and disorderly conduct that was captured on a livestream video.
—Juan A. Lozano, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
The public drunkenness allegation was dropped and LaBeouf eventually apologized, citing his addiction as a struggle.
—Mirna Alsharif, NBC news, 17 Feb. 2026
Pearl’s drunkenness provides the substrate for the novel’s magic, its icy transformation of the ordinary.
—Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
As Josh Barro argued two and a half years ago, a disquieting number of Kennedy men have injured or killed their romantic partners or themselves out of drunkenness and stupidity.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2026
While illicit drugs such as cocaine or heroin were largely unknown at the time of the nation’s founding, drunkenness was common and alcohol consumption was dramatic.
—Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 15 Jan. 2026
Ancestors are memorialized but then assured that the rum still flows as drunkenness overtakes our narrator.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025
Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 1 Mar. 2026
He was twice arrested in 2017, first for assault in Queens, and then in George for suspicion of public drunkenness.
—Jami Ganz, Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2026
LaBeouf has had several run-ins with the law during his career, including an early 2017 New York arrest for public drunkenness and disorderly conduct that was captured on a livestream video.
—Juan A. Lozano, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
The public drunkenness allegation was dropped and LaBeouf eventually apologized, citing his addiction as a struggle.
—Mirna Alsharif, NBC news, 17 Feb. 2026
Pearl’s drunkenness provides the substrate for the novel’s magic, its icy transformation of the ordinary.
—Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026
As Josh Barro argued two and a half years ago, a disquieting number of Kennedy men have injured or killed their romantic partners or themselves out of drunkenness and stupidity.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2026
While illicit drugs such as cocaine or heroin were largely unknown at the time of the nation’s founding, drunkenness was common and alcohol consumption was dramatic.
—Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 15 Jan. 2026
Ancestors are memorialized but then assured that the rum still flows as drunkenness overtakes our narrator.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drunkenness
Noun
-
Knuckling under the pressure to do something about this, Congress eventually passed a law that essentially denied such benefits to anyone whose only disabling condition was drug addiction or alcoholism.—
Tom Margenau,
Dallas Morning News,
1 Mar. 2026
-
A lot of these soldiers have high divorce rates, high amounts of alcoholism and abuse of pharmaceuticals.—
William Earl,
Variety,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Some 20,000 delirious, singing spectators with flags of every sort in various states of inebriation had gotten their money’s worth, and then some.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
After observing signs of intoxication, the officers conducted field sobriety tests and arrested him.—
Elissa Jorgensen,
Dallas Morning News,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Meredith’s death report lists methamphetamine intoxication as a significant condition, while Shoots’ lists acute and chronic alcohol toxicity as a significant condition.—
Theresa Clift,
Sacbee.com,
24 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Drunkenness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drunkenness. Accessed 8 Mar. 2026.
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