hangover
Americannoun
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the disagreeable physical aftereffects of drunkenness, such as a headache or stomach disorder, usually felt several hours after cessation of drinking.
- Synonyms:
- nausea, qualm, sickishness, queasiness
-
something remaining behind from a former period or state of affairs.
-
any aftermath of or lingering effect from a distressing experience.
the post-Watergate hangover in Washington.
noun
-
the delayed aftereffects of drinking too much alcohol in a relatively short period of time, characterized by headache and sometimes nausea and dizziness
-
a person or thing left over from or influenced by a past age
Etymology
Origin of hangover
1890–95, noun use of verb phrase hang over
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.
It was not a hangover from the celebrations.
From BBC • Mar. 4, 2026
Whether it's been age profile, a creaking scrum, a sputtering attack, the unsettled fly-half situation or a British and Irish Lions hangover, most of the discussion has been largely negative.
From BBC • Feb. 20, 2026
"The group and environment we've built will take care of itself, I don't think there will be too much of a hangover."
From Barron's • Jan. 26, 2026
They pulled back financially following their historic Super Bowl hangover the next season, opting for a “remodel,” as Snead called it, in 2023.
From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 25, 2026
But that is my own illusion, a hangover from a version of reality I learned in the former time.
From "The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood
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.
