ardent spirits

American  

plural noun

1. strong alcoholic liquors made by distillation, as brandy, whiskey, or gin.

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ardent spirits British  

plural noun

1. spirits, such as rum, whisky, etc

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Etymology

Origin of ardent spirits

First recorded in 1790–1800

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ardent spirits

Yet the nation's most famous glutton spurned ardent spirits for orange juice and lemon pop.

From Time Magazine Archive

Physicians were called upon to sign a pledge not to prescribe ardent spirits when any other substitute could be found, and in no case without a personal examination of the patient.

From Introduction to the Science of Sociology by Park, Robert Ezra

He frequently harangued his followers in my presence, and the evils attendant upon war and the use of ardent spirits was his constant theme.

From The Land of the Miamis An Account of the Struggle to Secure Possession of the North-West from the End of the Revolution until 1812 by Barce, Elmore

The prohibition of the sale of ardent spirits within certain areas has inaugurated a new and beneficial national policy.

From Stand Up, Ye Dead by Maclean, Norman

Though never a strict abstainer, I have wrought as an operative mason for whole twelvemonths together, in which I did not consume half-a-dozen glasses of ardent spirits, or partake of half-a-dozen draughts of fermented liquor.

From My Schools and Schoolmasters or The Story of my Education. by Miller, Hugh