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Synonyms

drinking

American  
[dring-king] / ˈdrɪŋ kɪŋ /

adjective

  1. suitable or safe to drink.

    drinking water.

  2. used in drinking.

    a drinking glass.

  3. addicted to or indulging excessively in alcohol.

    Is he a drinking man?

  4. of or relating to the act of drinking, especially the drinking of alcohol.

    a drinking companion.

noun

  1. habitual and excessive consumption of alcohol.

    His drinking caused him to lose his job.

Other Word Forms

  • undrinking adjective

Etymology

Origin of drinking

A Middle English word dating back to 1125–75; drink, -ing 2, -ing 1

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.

But when researchers subtly shifted what participants believed they were drinking, their experience changed.

From Science Daily • Apr. 9, 2026

Until then I’m just up and taking my supplements, taking my medicine, washing my face and drinking water.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 6, 2026

He believes this trend is driven by pandemic-era surges in drinking and an increase in people with risk factors for MASLD, like obesity and diabetes.

From Science Daily • Apr. 4, 2026

She urged the regulators to “move rapidly,” not only to regulate plastic in drinking water but prevent it from getting into drinking water in the first place.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026

There was a tiny galley kitchen for cooking, twin tanks of drinking water, and a general sense of cleanness and completeness and purpose.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

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.