bibulous
Americanadjective
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fond of or addicted to drink.
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absorbent; spongy.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of bibulous
1665–75; < Latin bibulus ( bib ( ere ) to drink (cognate with Sanskrit píbati (he) drinks) + -ulus -ulous )
Explanation
The adjective bibulous describes something that is highly absorbent, like a towel or sponge that soaks up liquid well. A bibulous person, however, is someone who likes to drink alcohol. Bibulous, pronounced "BIB-you-luhs," comes from the Latin word bibere, which means "to drink." You may recognize this root in the verb imbibe, which often means "to consume alcohol." As it applies to people, bibulous means "likes to drink alcohol." So don't make the mistake of using it to describe someone who seems to soak up information or understand complicated ideas quickly.
Vocabulary lists containing bibulous
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Until now, no book has explored that more-recent history, the bartender-driven Revolution of the Bibulous that has occurred in the bars all around us.
From Washington Post • Oct. 16, 2016
In the highest literary flights, Bridget's crowning reward was to wed Luke, the gamekeeper, and become landlady of The Bibulous Goat or The Doodlethorpe Arms.
From Superwomen by Terhune, Albert Payson
Bibulous, bib′ū-lus, adj. drinking or sucking in: spongy.
From Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D) by Various
"The performance of The Bibulous Butler at the Corinthian Theatre last night was witnessed by Mr. James Milfly and party, who occupied two seats in the eighth row of the pit."
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 159, 1920-09-29 by Various
Wilson says of him, "Bibulous, slow-witted and loose of life and morals, Van Twiller proved wholly unequal to the task in hand."
From Greenwich Village by Cram, Allan G. (Allan Gilbert)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
