drunken

[ druhng-kuhn ]

adjective

1. intoxicated; drunk. drunk.

   Synonyms: besotted, tipsy, inebriate

   Antonyms: sober

2. given to drunkenness.
3. pertaining to, caused by, or marked by intoxication:

   a drunken quarrel.

drunken

/ ˈdrʌŋkən /

adjective

1. intoxicated with or as if with alcohol
2. frequently or habitually drunk
3. prenominal caused by or relating to alcoholic intoxication

   a drunken brawl

Usage Note

See drunk.

Derived Forms

• ˈdrunkenness, noun
• ˈdrunkenly, adverb

Other Word Forms

• drunken·ly adverb
• drunken·ness noun
• half-drunken adjective
• un·drunken adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of drunken¹

Variant of drunk adj. and past participle

Example Sentences

In January, he was found guilty of attempted murder, and Judge Alice Robinson said at sentencing on Friday: "It was an angry, drunken and petulant, albeit extreme, reaction."

From BBC

Indeed, modern-day affirmative stereotypes about the Irish as a drunken and sentimental tribe of poets, dreamers and pugilists closely mirror older, more negative stereotypes, rendered charming instead of threatening.

From Salon

For decades, this fixture kept the police stretched with drunken sporadic violence.

From BBC

"The way it was twisted to make her out be a drunken, bigoted wee lout was one of the worst times of my life," recalls her father.

From BBC

But the magistrate said he was of "the view that unprovoked drunken behaviour is too serious to be dealt with unpaid work".

From BBC

Related Words

• intoxicated