John Barleycorn

American  

noun

1. a personification of barley as used in malt liquor, of malt liquor itself, or of any intoxicating liquor.

---

John Barleycorn British  

noun

1. humorous the personification of alcohol, esp of malt spirits

---

Etymology

Origin of John Barleycorn

First recorded in 1610–20

Example Sentences

Later, about 300 people gathered for a fundraiser at John Barleycorn in River North, where the price of admission was a symbolic $20.16 per person.

From Chicago Tribune • Jun. 5, 2014

Chicago bars using facial detection software Need to know how crowded John Barleycorn is right now?

From Chicago Tribune • Nov. 16, 2011

John Barleycorn, meanwhile, is tortured, killed and resuscitated, but in this parable of the agricultural cycle, it seems to me he is something of a straw man.

From The Guardian • Apr. 8, 2010

Composed of a series of simple quatrains, the song has been altered and elaborated by so many artists, including John Barleycorn, that no one person can ever have heard or imagined all its verses.

From Time Magazine Archive

But come November Hangman wakes up again, sort of like John Barleycorn in reverse.

From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell