Alcoholic Meaning
/ˌæl.kəˈhɒl.ɪk/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA person who is addicted to alcohol.
nounOne who abuses alcohol.
Sentence Examples
If you go on drinking so much, you may well end up an alcoholic.
An alcoholic tends not to die happily.
He ordered a non-alcoholic beverage to stay alert during the meeting.
CEFR Practice Quiz
After losing his job, he became a severe ____ who drank daily.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Many beer and wine products contain a low ____ content.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Akkadian 𒎎𒋆𒁉𒍣𒁕 (guḫlum)bor. Aramaic כוחלא (kuḥlā)bor. Arabic كُحْل (kuḥl) Andalusian Arabic اَلْكُحُول (al-kuḥūl)bor. Medieval Latin alcoholder. Middle English alcofol English alcohol Proto-Indo-European *-ikos Proto-Italic *-ikos Latin -icuslbor. Old French -iquebor. Middle English -ik English -ic English alcoholic First attested 1891, from alcohol + -ic.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Don't you know you've got your daddy's eyes
Daddy was an alcoholic"
— 2001, Starsailor, Alcoholic:
"Seeing the British establishment struggle with the financial sector is like watching an alcoholic who still resists the idea that something drastic needs to happen for him to turn his life around."
— 2013 June 28, Joris Luyendijk, “Our banks are out of control”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 3, page 21:
"A statement from the official Lao News Agency (KPL) Friday reported that “the consumption of tainted alcoholic beverages” was the suspected cause of the deaths."
— 2024 November 27, Jessie Yeung and Isaac Yee, “Laos detains foreign hostel staff over backpacker methanol poisonings as families and travelers demand answers”, in CNN:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
After losing his job, he became a severe ____ who drank daily.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
Many beer and wine products contain a low ____ content.