quaff
[kwof, kwaf, kwawf]
- to drink a beverage, especially an intoxicating one, copiously and with hearty enjoyment.
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- to drink (a beverage) copiously and heartily: We spent the whole evening quaffing ale.
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- an act or instance of quaffing.
- a beverage quaffed.
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Origin of quaff
First recorded in 1515–25; origin uncertain
Synonyms
See more synonyms for quaff on Thesaurus.com1. swallow, gulp, swig, guzzle.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for quaffed
Historical Examples
Wherever there was a knot of midnight roisterers, they quaffed her health.
The Sister Years (From "Twice Told Tales")Nathaniel Hawthorne
There they talked of the day's shooting as they ate their meat and quaffed their ale.
The Merry Adventures of Robin HoodHoward Pyle
Yes, all his evil came from that laugh of hers which he had quaffed.
Abbe Mouret's TransgressionEmile Zola
She quaffed the liquid, and returned the goblet to his hand.
Masterpieces of MysteryVarious
I sat by the fire-end and quaffed my ale, no one saying more to me for a little than "There you are!"
John SplendidNeil Munro
quaff
- to drink heartily or in one draught
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Word Origin
C16: perhaps of imitative origin; compare Middle Low German quassen to eat or drink excessively
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 quaffed
quaff
v.
1510s (implied in quaffer), perhaps imitative, or perhaps from Low German quassen "to overindulge (in food and drink)," with -ss- misread as -ff-. Related: Quaffed; quaffing. The noun is attested by 1570s, from the verb.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper