drunk tank

noun

, Informal.

1. a large jail cell where persons arrested for drunkenness are kept, usually overnight.

drunk tank

noun

1. informal.
   a large police cell used for detaining drunks overnight

Word History and Origins

Origin of drunk tank¹

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

The book does open with you in the drunk tank in Van Nuys.

From Los Angeles Times

“Fairytale of New York” flips this notion on its head by celebrating star-crossed lovers, gamblers and bums in a drunk tank — all the misfits who are searching for a family of their own on Christmas Eve.

From Los Angeles Times

The Pogues’ most famous song, “Fairytale of New York” is a bittersweet Christmas classic that opens with the decidedly unfestive words: “It was Christmas Eve, babe, in the drunk tank.”

From Washington Times

“We’re not talking the drunk tank here,” he wrote in “Long Time Gone.”

From Los Angeles Times

For example, a bright tone of pink known as either “Baker-Miller Pink” or “Drunk Tank Pink” has been touted for decades as having a calming effect on prisoners or psychiatric patients.

From Washington Post