wino

American  

[wahy-noh] / ˈwaɪ noʊ /

noun

Informal: Disparaging and Offensive.

plural

winos

1. an indiscriminate drinker of wine or other readily available alcoholic beverages who is frequently intoxicated, especially a derelict who lives on the streets.

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wino British  

/ ˈwaɪnəʊ /

noun

1. informal a person who habitually drinks wine as a means of getting drunk

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Etymology

Origin of wino

An Americanism dating back to 1915–20; wine + -o

Example Sentences

I was like, that’s not going to work for this salty Dublin screaming-screeching wino woman that I’m writing about.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 22, 2023

In Poland it's called grzane wino and in Germany it is gluhwein, which both directly translate to mulled wine.

From Salon • Sep. 1, 2022

By taking account of a few simple precepts, you can become a "wino" – a charmed, bon mot-slinging sophisticate with entrée into society's most exclusive clubs and factions, for whom dullness is the only impossibility.

From The Guardian • Jun. 16, 2010

More nights than I care to remember I'd stand there and cry, and then wipe away my tears so that I wouldn't look like a wino on the subway riding uptown.

From Time Magazine Archive