alcoholic
Americanadjective
-
of, relating to, or of the nature of alcohol.
The fermented milk has a mildly alcoholic flavor.
-
containing or using alcohol.
The bar serves beer, wine, and other alcoholic beverages.
-
caused by alcohol.
alcoholic fermentation.
-
of or like a person with alcoholism or alcohol use disorder.
She hadn’t seen or spoken to her alcoholic aunt in over a decade.
-
preserved in alcohol.
Tissue shrinking in alcoholic specimens did not affect nuclear composition.
noun
-
alcoholics
plural
noun
adjective
Sensitive Note
See addict.
Synonym Usage
See inebriate.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of alcoholic
Explanation
Something that's alcoholic contains alcohol. At a party, the host may offer a pitcher of alcoholic punch and another of non-alcoholic punch. Use alcoholic to describe something that has alcohol in it, or otherwise has to do with alcohol. Alcoholic cider, for example, is fermented, and drinking too much can be intoxicating. The noun alcoholic means a person who's dependent on alcohol, whose drinking has become compulsive and unhealthy. This meaning developed in the late 1800s, from the earlier term alcoholist. The group Alcoholics Anonymous was founded in 1935 for alcoholics to help themselves and others quit drinking.
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.
See Examples For:
The response targets various alcoholic drinks and dairy products like whey, according to a series of White House statements signed by the president.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
She is also leaning in to different types of white wines that are popular with younger Chinese drinkers, and is making alcoholic drinks from traditional Chinese fruit.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
Senior officials last month described the planned 50% tariffs on Canada as a response to the country’s discrimination against U.S. alcoholic beverages, U.S. dairy products and U.S. motor vehicles.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 17, 2026
Santa Monica put screens on every block of the Third Street Promenade for World Cup watch parties where patrons were allowed to carry alcoholic beverages within a specific area of the open-air mall.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 3, 2026
Along with devoting herself to campaigning for a ban on alcoholic beverages, Willard was also a strong advocate of women’s right to vote and an eight-hour workday.
From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler
I’m 26 years sober and in my experience the only people that ever teased me were alcoholics themselves.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2023
Children of alcoholics are most often on high alert trying to anticipate other people’s feelings, so they can try to head off problems or incidents before they become overwhelming.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 15, 2022
It’s not just for recovering alcoholics or nondrinkers.
From New York Times ● Nov. 9, 2022
The Back on Track project brings together Brighton & Hove City Council with charities the Oasis Project and Nacoa to offer specialist support to people who grew up with alcoholics.
From BBC ● Aug. 13, 2021
I have been actively engaged in the practice of medicine for nearly twenty-five years, in the early portion of which I prescribed alcoholics moderately but yet with considerable frequency.
From Alcohol: A Dangerous and Unnecessary Medicine, How and Why What Medical Writers Say by Martha Meir Allen
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