- past participle of intoxicate.
- past tense form of intoxicate.
intoxicated
Americanadjective
-
affected by a substance that intoxicates; drunk; inebriated.
-
mentally or emotionally exhilarated.
- Synonyms:
- enthralled, ecstatic, enrapt, rapturous, rapt
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of intoxicated
First recorded in 1550–60; intoxicate + -ed 2
Compare meaning
How does intoxicated compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Someone who's intoxicated has had too much to drink. Visit an Irish pub on St. Patrick's Day and you're sure to see at least one intoxicated person. When you describe someone as intoxicated, you usually mean that he's been drinking alcoholic beverages until he feels dizzy and sick. You can also use the word to talk about someone who's really excited or happy about something: "She was intoxicated by Paris the minute she stepped off the airplane." Before intoxicated was first used to mean "drunk" in the 1570's, it meant "poisoned," which especially makes sense when you know the Latin root word, intoxicare, "to poison."
Vocabulary lists containing intoxicated
Three Little Words
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"The Nightingale" by Hans Christian Andersen
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Elf Dog and Owl Head
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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.
When it made its stateside debut in 1999, I was still intoxicated by the city’s proximity to mountains, old growth forests and water – so much of it, fresh or salty.
From Salon ● Jul. 22, 2026
The government did not allege that he was intoxicated while possessing the firearm, that he was addicted to marijuana, that he had ever threatened anyone, or that his gun ownership had resulted in any danger.
From Slate ● Jun. 26, 2026
Her guards "should check that anyone approaching her is not intoxicated or armed," he added.
From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2025
Bana was intoxicated by his environment — so much so that he wouldn’t want to go back to the sterility of a soundstage.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2025
In the interim he was intoxicated with an overabundance of free time and his whole frame trembled and fidgeted with impatience.
From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy
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.
