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bibulous

[bib-yuh-luh s]
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adjective
  1. fond of or addicted to drink.
  2. absorbent; spongy.
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Origin of bibulous

1665–75; < Latin bibulus (bib(ere) to drink (cognate with Sanskrit píbati (he) drinks) + -ulus -ulous)
Related formsbib·u·lous·ly, adverbbib·u·lous·ness, bib·u·los·i·ty [bib-yuh-los-i-tee] /ˌbɪb yəˈlɒs ɪ ti/, nounnon·bib·u·lous, adjectivenon·bib·u·lous·ly, adverbnon·bib·u·lous·ness, nounun·bib·u·lous, adjectiveun·bib·u·lous·ly, adverbun·bib·u·lous·ness, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for bibulous

absorptive, permeable, porous, spongy, alcoholic, boozy, sottish

Examples from the Web for bibulous

Historical Examples of bibulous

  • His mind strayed back to Ralston, and to the bibulous explorer.

    Despair's Last Journey

    David Christie Murray

  • But this we leave to the bibulous, and go on with the story.

    Moon Lore

    Timothy Harley

  • In a general way we attributed it to the bibulous set at the Corners.

    When Life Was Young

    C. A. Stephens

  • The bibulous passenger was severely shaken, but very dignified.

  • I shall waste my talents intellectual and bibulous on him no longer.

    The Belovd Vagabond

    William J. Locke

British Dictionary definitions for bibulous

bibulous

adjective
  1. addicted to alcohol
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Derived Formsbibulously, adverbbibulousness, noun

Word Origin for bibulous

C17: from Latin bibulus, from bibere to drink
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for bibulous

adj.

1670s, "spongy, absorbent," from Latin bibulus "drinking readily, given to drink;" of things, "absorbent; moistened," from bibere "to drink" (see imbibe). Meaning "fond of drink" attested in English by 1861.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper