three sheets to the wind

Cultural  

1. To be “three sheets to the wind” is to be drunk. The sheet is the line that controls the sails on a ship. If the line is not secured, the sail flops in the wind, and the ship loses headway and control. If all three sails are loose, the ship is out of control.

---

three sheets to the wind Idioms  

1. Also, three sheets in the wind. Drunk, inebriated, as in After six beers he's three sheets to the wind. This expression is generally thought to refer to the sheet—that is, a rope or chain—that holds one or both lower corners of a sail. If the sheet is allowed to go slack in the wind, the sail flaps about and the boat is tossed about much as a drunk staggers. Having three sheets loose would presumably make the situation all the worse. Another explanation holds that with two or four sheets to the wind the boat is balanced, whereas with three it is not. [Mid-1800s]

---

Example Sentences

It told the story of Cassie, a med-school dropout on a mission to attract and ultimately school sexual predators by hanging out at nightclubs pretending to be three sheets to the wind.

From Los Angeles Times

He said they were “three sheets to the wind,” according to one tweet.

From Washington Times

Three Sheets to the Wind, a yacht rock cover band, will perform.

From Washington Post

It’s midday Thursday in Changchun, the Detroit of China, and auto factory retiree Zhang Jinchuan is nearly three sheets to the wind.

From Los Angeles Times

So, if you’re seven sheets to the wind, you’re more inebriated than someone who is three sheets to the wind, and you should probably call in sick immediately.

From Forbes

Related Words

• stoned
• tipsy