carouse

[kuh-rouz]

verb (used without object)

caroused, carousing 

1. to engage in a drunken revel.

   They caroused all night.

   Synonyms: drink, celebrate, revel

2. to drink deeply and frequently.

noun

1. carousal.

carouse

/ kəˈraʊz /

verb

1. (intr) to have a merry drinking spree; drink freely

noun

1. another word for carousal

Other Word Forms

• carousing noun
• carouser noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of carouse¹

First recorded in 1550–60; variant of garouse, from German gar aus (trinken) “(to drink) fully out,” i.e., “to drain the cup”; compare Middle French carous, from dialectal German gar ūs

Word History and Origins

Origin of carouse¹

C16: via French carrousser from German ( trinken ) gar aus (to drink) right out

Example Sentences

The flamenco dancer Olga Pericet began topless, curled up on the floor like a beached mermaid or a woman recovering from a night of carousing.

Read more on New York Times

I was in New York doing a show and perhaps going through some melancholic times and carousing too much and enjoying Broadway, but not really that happy myself.

Read more on New York Times

MacGowan died Nov. 30 at the age of 65 after a lifetime of drinking, carousing and writing songs that fused Irish tradition with the spirit of punk.

Read more on Washington Times

His songs blended the scabrous and the sentimental, ranging from carousing anthems to snapshots of life in the gutter to unexpectedly tender love songs.

Read more on Washington Times

Beneath the gaiety and carousing ran an undercurrent of anguish: The country remains locked in a ferocious war with Russia.

Read more on Washington Times