# a drunk vs an alcoholic



## Packard

*Context* (from www.exdrunkard.com:

I read a quotation where the writer wrote: _Back in my drinking days when someone in a bar asked what the difference was between a drunk and an alcoholic, I’d grin and reply, “us drunks don’t have to go to meetings.”...

_*Question:

*Do you distinguish between a "drunk" and an "alcoholic"? And what distinctions do you make?

(I consider them to be more or less synonymous.)


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## Bevj

I have always considered them synonymous too, though 'drunk' is much more brusque than 'alcoholic'.  'He's a drunk' sounds much more derogatory to me.
I think that in the quotation you provide, the suggestion is that an _alcoholic_ is to be taken more seriously while a _drunk_ is almost a subject for joking.


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## Franco-filly

A drunk is anyone who has consumed too much alcohol, but often refers to someone who is regularly drunk.  An alcoholic is someone/a drunk who is addicted to alcohol.


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## Packard

Franco-filly said:


> A drunk is anyone who has consumed too much alcohol, but often refers to someone who is regularly drunk. An alcoholic is someone/a drunk who is addicted to alcohol.



So I could be a "drunk" and quit drinking anytime I want?


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## JulianStuart

I associate the term "drunk", as an adjective, with someone who is only currently intoxicated, while an alcoholic is someone who habitually drinks a lot of alcohol - is frequently inotxicated. 

The noun "drunk" is not in my active vocabulary but  I have often wondered whether "a drunk" is simply a "person who is drunk now" or someone who is "habitually drunk" - i.e. an alcoholic.


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## Packard

JulianStuart said:


> ...The noun "drunk" is not in my active vocabulary but I have often wondered whether "a drunk" is simply a "person who is drunk now" or someone who is "habitually drunk" - i.e. an alcoholic.



This is the distinction I might have made a few years back. But is it possible to get drunk regularly without becoming an alcoholic?


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## JulianStuart

Packard said:


> This is the distinction I might have made a few years back. But is it possible to get drunk regularly without becoming an alcoholic?


I think we might be wandering into medical territory, rather than language territory.  In either case, it seems like the definition is hard to describe "quantitatively". If I go out with the lads once a month and end up drunk, but have little to drink between those events, I don't _think_ that means I am an alcoholic. One might say that getting drunk reguary doesn't automatically qualify you as an "alcoholic" but it might lead to the condition recognized medically.


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## bennymix

I've read a bit of AA literature, and Bill W., founder of AA, often says things like "We sobered up hundreds of drunks."    In other words, the terms are pretty much the same except 'drunk'  (meaning a person who's often or habitually  so) is more informal.


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## Nick 81

Thank you  guys for bringing up this subject .

*QUOTE:*I associate the term "drunk", as an adjective, with someone who is only currently intoxicated, while an alcoholic is someone who habitually drinks a lot of alcohol - is frequently inotxicated. 


JulianStuart's distinction is the one I have always drawn. As far as the use of "drunk" as a noun, I would use it to refer to someone who is habitually drunk, but to criticise them, so I find the term rather offensive.

What about the adjective "pissed"?
Is it used with the same meaning as drunk( adjective), hence when talking about someone who is occasionally drunk as in "I got absolutely pissed last night? "
*Added: *Thank you bennymix for your explanation.

So, -He is drunk (adjective)= He has drunk too much alcohol (just once/specific event)
      -He is a drunk (noun)= He drinks too much alcohol (we are referring to a bad habit he has)


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## Packard

A co-worker has pointed out that there are plenty of functional-alcoholics.  People that are alcohol-dependent but never are seemingly "drunk".  So what does that observation bring to the table?


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## Myridon

Packard said:


> A co-worker has pointed out that there are plenty of functional-alcoholics.  People that are alcohol-dependent but never are seemingly "drunk".  So what does that observation bring to the table?


Recovering alcoholics (e.g. people in Alcoholic Anonymous) are still considered alcoholics despite the fact that they never drink.  They are alcoholics but not drunks.


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## bennymix

A 'recovering alcoholic' ['alcoholic in recovery'] is the same thing as a 'reformed drunk.'   The basic terms, however, are pretty much synonymous.  

=====



Myridon said:


> Recovering alcoholics (e.g. people in Alcoholic Anonymous) are still considered alcoholics despite the fact that they never drink.  They are alcoholics but not drunks.


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## JamesM

I draw the same distinction as Julian Stuart.  A drunk is someone who is currently inebriated or refers to someone's typical disposition when they are inebriated.  "Watch out for that drunk over there, stumbling around."  I can't imagine saying "Watch out for that alcoholic over there, stumbling around."  They don't seem synonymous to me at all.

The other use, regarding disposition, is "he's a happy drunk", "he's a mean drunk", "she's a sad drunk" and such.  This doesn't tell me if the person is an alcoholic or not.  It only tells me how they behave when they are drunk.

Now, a drunkard is a chronic drunk to me.   Whether it's due to dependency on alcohol or self-medication because of depression or something else, I don't know.  I only know that someone who is described as a drunkard will, more likely than not, be drunk at any time of the day or night you run into them.

I also know alcoholics who never appear drunk and actually function as if they were sober, even when drinking.  It's a completely different thing to me.  Of course, a person can be both but they are not interchangeable in my mind.


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## boozer

With my nickname I should probably have steered clear of this thread , but for me there is a difference:

_a drunk - someone who drinks a lot
an alcoholic - someone who needs to drink a lot; this is a medical condition, isn't it?
_
A drunk may or may not be an alcoholic. As already said, 'drunk' is rude. 'Alcoholic' is a diagnosis.


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## MattiasNYC

I have to agree that "A drunk" and "An alcoholic" are pretty much synonymous. That one can also "be drunk" is a different matter. I also think that whether or not it shows that someone has an addiction problem, or whether or not that impression is true is ultimately irrelevant.

My experience is that people that have dealt with their addiction and are now abstaining will use the term "alcoholic" rather than "drunk" when pointing out that they are "recovering". I think it's just something people get used to. "Drunk" as a description of what a person _is_ to me sounds pretty harsh whereas "Alcoholic" sounds more neutral and "medical" and therefore preferable to many people.


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## MattiasNYC

boozer said:


> With my nickname I should probably have steered clear of this thread , but for me there is a difference:
> 
> _a drunk - someone who drinks a lot_



I would never refer to someone who drinks a lot as "a drunk". Never. To me that absolutely implies a problem. I would say that they _are_ drunk whenever they're inebriated, but I would never characterize them like that generally.


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## JamesM

Packard said:


> So I could be a "drunk" and quit drinking anytime I want?



Yes, in the way I interpret the words.  You would only be a drunk _while_ you were drinking heavily.  The next day you could be sober. I wouldn't call you a drunk at that point.

If I say "There are three drunks out in the parking lot making noise" I don't mean that I know they habitually drink.  They may be complete strangers.  How would I know? I only know their current condition.


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## bennymix

I agree there a couple meanings of the noun 'drunk', somewhat as francofilly said.  Currently under the effects, vs. regularly, or as I put it, 'often or habitually' under those effects.

One can say, "The bouncer ejected the drunk from the bar."  That's the first sense.  "I've seen that old drunk at the bar almost every time I've been here" is the latter sense.

Most of the other posters' examples above relate to that distinction.   There are also differences as to possible insult, and as to medical terminology: the same difference between  "I've got hay fever" and "I've got allergic rhinitis".  Much is just the issue of genteelism, 'sweat' vs. 'perspire,'   which is why Bill W., in AA writings will 'deflate' himself and others saying things such as [my construction], "We drunks--before recovery-- were the most amazing and prodigious liars."





JamesM said:


> I draw the same distinction as Julian Stuart.  A drunk is someone who is currently inebriated or refers to someone's typical disposition when they are inebriated.  "Watch out for that drunk over there, stumbling around."  I can't imagine saying "Watch out for that alcoholic over there, stumbling around."  They don't seem synonymous to me at all.
> 
> The other use, regarding disposition, is "he's a happy drunk", "he's a mean drunk", "she's a sad drunk" and such.  This doesn't tell me if the person is an alcoholic or not.  It only tells me how they behave when they are drunk.
> 
> Now, a drunkard is a chronic drunk to me.   Whether it's due to dependency on alcohol or self-medication because of depression or something else, I don't know.  I only know that someone who is described as a drunkard will, more likely than not, be drunk at any time of the day or night you run into them.
> 
> I also know alcoholics who never appear drunk and actually function as if they were sober, even when drinking.  It's a completely different thing to me.  Of course, a person can be both but they are not interchangeable in my mind.


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## MattiasNYC

JamesM said:


> Yes, in the way I interpret the words.  You would only be a drunk _while_ you were drinking heavily.  The next day you could be sober. I wouldn't call you a drunk at that point.
> 
> If I say "There are three drunks out in the parking lot making noise" I don't mean that I know that they habitually drink.  They may be complete strangers.  How would I know? I only know their current condition.



That's true in that hypothetical example though. Suppose you actually know they're alcoholics. I would argue that they could then be called "drunks" with the meaning that they indeed are "alcoholics", or "habitual drunkards", or "chronic drinkers" or whatever one might want to call it.


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## JamesM

And I would disagree with your argument.  An alcoholic can be drunk or sober at any given time.  An alcoholic can be continuously sober for years.  His condition as an alcoholic doesn't change because he is or is not drinking.  I wouldn't use "alcoholic" to mean that they were chronically drunk.

I'll grant that if you said to me "He's a drunk" I would probably take it to mean that he habitually drinks excessively.  The original question, though, was "Do you distinguish between a drunk and an alcoholic?"  Absolutely.



Mixing the two is the same to me as confusing "you're a liar" with "you're a sociopath".  If I say to someone that he is a liar I don't mean that he is addicted to lying or that he compulsively lies because of a diagnosable mental illness.  I can only comment on the behavior I see.


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## bennymix

I know some of you will object to my 'construction' in post #18.   OK.   Here is my exhibit as to the synonymity of 'drunk' (n.)(meaning one who is habitually so) and 'alcoholic'  from an early 'Grapevine' column by Bill W., co-founder of AA.

Speaking of the issue of raising money, in the early (1930s) days of AA, Bill W recounts (1947) that it appeared simple:



> "Did we not already have (in prideful imagination) the beginning of the of the greatest social, medical and spiritual developments of all time.  Weren't we drunks all salemen?  Hadn't I been a Wall Street man?...Our awakening was rude.
> It soon appeared that people with money had little interest in drunks."



He then mentions a critical turning point one day,   



> "At the office of my physician brother in law, I was bemoaning, in
> typical alcoholic fashion, how little we poor drunks were appreciated....



p. 59,  _The Language of the Heart_ (1988).


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## MattiasNYC

JamesM said:


> If I say to someone that he is a liar I don't mean that he is addicted to lying or that he compulsively lies because of a diagnosable mental illness.  I can only comment on the behavior I see.



I'm only saying that just because it's true in that particular instance doesn't mean it isn't untrue in another, or conversely, whatever. In other words; a person that lies all the time could be called a "liar" with that in mind ("I just don't trust Mike; he's a liar."), just as he could be called "a liar" with a singular instance in mind. One doesn't exclude the other. And if lying all the time makes one qualify for the term "sociopath" that doesn't mean "liar" is disqualified.

Is "alcoholic" and "drunk" different? Yes, because I wouldn't refer to someone who is currently inebriated as "he is alcoholic" but instead "he is drunk". On the other hand I _would_ possibly use either to describe a person who has a problem with drinking and chronically drinks too much; that person to me could be called 'a drunk' or 'an alcoholic'. That's the way I'd use the term and it's also the way I've heard the terms been used.


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## Nick 81

*Quote:*"There are three drunks out in the parking lot making noise".

I think that the use of the terms "drunk(noun)/drunk(adjective) and alcoholic" is also related to whether the word is used as a subject or a predicate noun/ adjective.

  "There are three drunks out in the parking lot making noise". In this sentence "drunks" is the subject, but I would use the predicate adjective in this (rather clumsy) sentence: "There are *three people who are drunk* out in the parking lot making noise. (In my example I am referring to people that have drunk too much alcohol on this occasion not to people that have this habit).
*Added:*out of a specific context,when drunk is used as the subject of a sentence  , I don't think I could be able to understand whether we are referring to someone currently drunk or chronically drunk, but the sentence "He is drunk  " makes me think of a person who is currently drunk, the expression "He is a drunk" makes me think of someone who is chronically drunk, but maybe I would use alcoholic (I don't know why but I find it more respectful).


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## JamesM

Here are some quotes related to my sense of the words:

From an alcoholic on a discussion board:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=336x222


> I have known people who were drunks, but not alcoholics.. they were in control of not using it.. I have 30 years of alcoholism to back up my stand. I COULD NOT STOP DRINKING. IT WAS NOT POSSABLE..



From someone who is "a drunk but not an alcoholic"
http://acephalous.typepad.com/.m/acephalous/2005/09/on_jager_or_dri.html


> Speaking of drunks, I like to drink.  Because I'm a graduate student.  And a drunk.  But not an alcoholic.  How do I know?  Back when I had cancer and couldn't drink for fear of interfering with the chemo, it came to my attention that while I enjoy unwinding in the evening with a drink (or two or three or enough shots to send me bending for a fortnight), I hadn't reached the point where I needed a drink to unwind.


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## bennymix

Yes, James, I agree.  Besides the two senses (of 'drunk' (n) )  I mentioned, there is a kind of milder form of 'drunk' (than my sense 2, that employed by Bill W);  he's drunk very often (not quite habitually), but hasn't quite lost control.  AA calls them 'heavy drinkers' or 'problem drinkers.'   There's obviously a gray area.


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## MarcB

Based on what I have read here and what I have heard in daily life, I would say that they can have different meanings and that they sometimes overlap. I_n certain scenarios one is more appropriate than the other. However in common use drunk(noun),drunkard and alcoholic are often used interchangeably. Obviously the register is different._


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## BBQueen

I hear  (am reading) a lot of denial.  Good grief, They're the same!  If you drink to get drunk on a regular basis. (if every time you drink you can't stop you're probably an alcoholic.


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## DonnyB

BBQueen said:


> I hear  (am reading) a lot of denial.  Good grief, They're the same!  If you drink to get drunk on a regular basis. (if every time you drink you can't stop you're probably an alcoholic.


But a "drunk" doesn't, to me, necessarily imply someone getting _drunk on a regular basis._

Where I live, I can always hear the *drunks* celebrating noisily in the streets on New Year's Eve.  But they _may_ be perfectly sober the other 364 nights of the year.


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## BBQueen

DonnyB said:


> But a "drunk" doesn't, to me, necessarily imply someone getting _drunk on a regular basis._
> 
> Where I live, I can always hear the *drunks* celebrating noisily in the streets on New Year's Eve.  But they _may_ be perfectly sober the other 364 nights of the year.


Key words, "regular basis" "drinking to specifically to get drunk" Sounds like people drinking as opposed to drunks. 

They're the same. Just a form of denial on the drunk's part. in my opinion. I know one. He's an alcoholic and calls himself a drunk and is offended at being called an alcoholic. When being drunk causes you consequences, you're an alcoholic.


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## SwissPete

For what it is worth:

From http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/

*Drunkenness*:

Intoxication, usually alcoholic.

The condition of being delirious with or as if with alcohol; intoxication.​
*Alcoholism: *

Alcoholism or alcohol dependence is defined by the American Medical Association (AMA) as "a primary, chronic disease with genetic, psychosocial, and environmental factors influencing its development and manifestations."​


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## Packard

Does every person who drinks to excess on a regular basis become addicted to alcohol?  I know that most do, but do all?


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## Hildy1

If I hear someone say "he's a drunk", it sounds as if the speaker disapproves of the person. It often means that the person behaves badly because of drinking alcohol.

"He's an alcoholic" refers to a medical condition. The person may not behave badly, but is dependent on alcohol.

This corresponds to the definitions given above by SwissPete,


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## BBQueen

Usually alcoholic  <-->  means the same thing.  That's like the difference between Lying and cheating.  If you're lying you are cheating but the two words have many other and different meanings.  A drunk is an alcoholic in MOST cases which is what usually means.



<--> Please use standard English.  Cagey, moderator.


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## BBQueen

In other words, A drunk is an alcoholic


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## Hildy1

BBQueen said:


> In other words, A drunk is an alcoholic



Often, as BBQueen says, but not always. Someone who drinks once a year, but drinks enough to behave badly on that occasion, can be a drunk when it happens. That doesn't necessarily mean that the person is an alcoholic.

Incidentally, if someone says "there is a drunk in the parking lot", it probably means a drunk man. If it's a woman, people would usually use the adjective form: a drunk woman.


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## Silver

Franco-filly said:


> A drunk is anyone who has consumed too much alcohol, but often refers to someone who is regularly drunk.  An alcoholic is someone/a drunk who is addicted to alcohol.



This is also what I want to say.


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## JamesM

BBQueen said:


> In other words, A drunk is an alcoholic



Sorry, I disagree.  As others have said, it depends on context.  If I say "I came around the corner and almost ran over a couple of drunks who were stumbling across the street" I have no idea how much they regularly drink.  I only know their current condition.


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## AutumnOwl

As an ACoA (Adult Children of Alcoholics) I don't see a drunk and an alcoholic as the same thing, some alcoholics don't drink that much so that they get drunk, they just are never really sober, while there are others who are not alcoholic (don't have a need for alcohol) but when they drink they have so much that they get very drunk. Perhaps that's part of the binge drinking culture in the Scandinavian countries, people drink very much in the weekends but (didn't) drink during the week. Now the continental habit of drinking a little every day (a glass of vine or two or a beer daily) have been added to the binge drinking.

< Edited at poster's request to add explanation of abbreviation.  Cagey, moderator. >


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## ain'ttranslationfun?

bennymix said:


> AA calls them 'heavy drinkers' or 'problem drinkers.'   There's obviously a gray area.



Many people resort to "heavy drinker" to avoid the opprobrium asssociated with "a drunk" and making the diagnosis "an alcoholic". People also often use it as a euphemism to describe (and excuse) a friend who constantly drinks too much (and may be a functioning alcoholic).


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## Thomas Tompion

I think one might regularly drink a lot (ie. be a drunkard) and not know whether one was an alcoholic (ie. dependent on alcohol) - I admit that those are quite narrow definitions, but this is a distinction I draw.

If a drunkard becomes physically allergic to alcohol and is forced to abstain, he might find that he wasn't an alcoholic at all.  Until that moment, living as he has with alcohol in his blood all the time, he has little means of knowing.

So loosely labeling a drunkard as an alcoholic might be understandable, but could be strictly inaccurate.

Like several others, I usually reserve the noun _drunk_ for someone who is currently intoxicated, though I know people who don't distinguish between drunks and drunkards.


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## ewie

_Drunk_ and _alcoholic_ are far from synonymous for me too.  Even _alcoholic_ and _drunkard_ aren't perfect synonyms.


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## BBQueen

Medical Dictionary
*drunkard*

_noun_ drunk·ard \ˈdrəŋ-kərd\
*Medical Definition of DRUNKARD*
*:*  one suffering from or subject to acute or chronic alcoholism *:*  one who habitually becomes drunk.

That's right out of Webster's Dictionary. ^^^^  It's the same as alcoholic.

*2alcoholic*
_noun_
: a person who frequently drinks too much alcohol and is unable to live a normal and healthy life : a person who is affected with alcoholism

*Related to ALCOHOLIC*
Synonyms
drunk, alkie (_or_ alky) [_slang_], boozehound, boozer, dipsomaniac, drinker, drunkard,inebriate, juicehead [_slang_], juicer [_slang_], lush, rummy, soak, soaker, sot, souse, tippler,toper, tosspot

*synonym*

_noun_ syn·o·nym \ˈsi-nə-ˌnim\
: a word that has the same meaning as another word in the same language

: a word, name, or phrase that very strongly suggests a particular idea, quality, etc.

It's the same thing.  A drunk is an alcoholic.  Getting drunk on one occasion is different than being a drunk.


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## Thomas Tompion

All the distinctions which make ordinary speech so interesting seem to have been disposed of by Mr Webster.  I hope he has a happy Christmas.


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## ain'ttranslationfun?

Hildy1 said:


> Incidentally, if someone says "there is a drunk in the parking lot", it probably means a drunk man. If it's a woman, people would usually use the adjective form: a drunk woman.



Interesting point. I'd say "a drunk*en* woman", though.


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## Andygc

A doctor writes ... I have no idea why anybody would quote something purporting to be a medical definition of drunkard. There is no medical definition of drunkard, since "drunkard" is not a medical term. It is a word belonging in the general lay vocabulary of English. 

The purported definition of "alcoholic" is also bizarre. An alcoholic is not "a person who frequently drinks too much alcohol and is unable to live a normal and healthy life". From a medical perspective, an alcoholic is a person who is addicted to alcohol - no more, no less. Whether or not he can lead an apparently normal life depends on the degree and pattern of his addiction. Winston Churchill did pretty well on whisky in the morning, champagne with lunch and brandy in the evening.

A person whose drinking interferes with a normal life might be an alcoholic or a non-alcoholic "problem drinker". A problem drinker could reasonably be called a "drunkard" by his neighbour, but not by his doctor in his medical notes. He might also be described as an "alcohol abuser", or the notes might refer to his "misuse of alcohol".

The word "drunk" does not have a specific medical meaning, but the adjective "drunk" could well appear in the medical notes ("He was incapably drunk when he arrived in Casualty"). I would be very surprised to see the noun used in a medical record.

The lay meaning of "drunk" seems to have been covered pretty well in this thread. I'd agree, with my white coat on the peg, that "a drunk" is not a synonym for "an alcoholic". That it may be used in a self-deprecatory way within AA to mean "we alcoholics" does not mean that it is used that way in normal conversation.



Thomas Tompion said:


> All the distinctions which make ordinary speech so interesting seem to have been disposed of by Mr Webster.  I hope he has a happy Christmas.


TT. For "Webster" read "Merriam-Webster". Webster died long ago. As some of our American friends here often say, "M-W" is an initialism for "mostly wrong".


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## JamesM

> ..."a drunk" is not a synonym for "an alcoholic". That it may be used in a self-deprecatory way within AA to mean "we alcoholics" does not mean that it is used that way in normal conversation.


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## Einstein

ain'ttranslationfun? said:


> Interesting point. I'd say "a drunk*en* woman", though.


I'd say it's more correct also in the case of "a drunken man". "Drunk" is not the only adjective that changes according to its position:
A drunken man; he is drunk.
A live animal; the animal is alive.
A lone wolf; the wolf is alone.
- So "a drunk" or "a drunken man".

I'll add my voice to the definitions:
Drunk: someone's present condition.
Drunkard: a person who is habitually drunk (but not necessarily dependent).
An Alcoholic: a medical condition; an alcoholic may actually be avoiding alcohol to overcome this condition, so it's certainly not a synonym of Drunkard. I knew an alcoholic who avoided going into pubs and hadn't consumed alcohol for years, but he was always in danger of starting again and couldn't take the risk.


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## ain'ttranslationfun?

Yes, but unless I'm mistaken Hildy's point was that, unless one specifies the contrary, the inebriated person is a man. (I'm referring to Hildy's 34th post after the OP in this thread as it appears now (, you know who!).


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## Thomas Tompion

Hello Einstein,

Are  you saying that people don't talk of _a drunk_, for someone who is drunk, or for someone who is often drunk.

If you are, then I'm afraid I disagree.

Here are the first two, of many, examples I found in the BE corpus:

_You arrest somebody, maybe a drunk, the next day he's feeling a little disgruntled and almost inevitably he'll make a complaint… _

_Her friends did not think of her as a drunk and Rachel would be truly shocked if she knew about the long nights of insomnia and secret alcohol. _


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## Einstein

Thomas Tompion said:


> Hello Einstein,
> 
> Are  you saying that people don't talk of _a drunk_, for someone who is drunk, or for someone who is often drunk.
> 
> If you are, then I'm afraid I disagree.
> 
> Here are the first two, of many, examples I found in the BE corpus:
> 
> _You arrest somebody, maybe a drunk, the next day he's feeling a little disgruntled and almost inevitably he'll make a complaint… _
> 
> _Her friends did not think of her as a drunk and Rachel would be truly shocked if she knew about the long nights of insomnia and secret alcohol. _


No, I'm not saying people don't talk of _a drunk_. My point was principally that the adjective, when preceding a noun, is more correctly _drunken_: _a drunken man; he is drunk.
A drunk_ (as a noun) is normal and can mean either momentarily or often drunk.


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## ImAnAlkyGfsAdrunk

I'd say it's really subjective, but here's my opinion.  I'll use myself as the subject.

I'm called an alcoholic by my <girl friend> constantly, never looked into the "prerequisites" to be thought so highly of.  my opinion is, I was for a few years a while back,  but not now although I can say I have at least a beer daily. Old me would drink a lot, I'd often keep drinking and end up drunk.   I didn't say to myself,  "let's get wasted", it'd just happen when I kept drinking having fun with friends, sometimes solo.  That was my opinion of me being an alcoholic.  Constantly hungover,  going to work still drunk at 7am, overall wreck, near daiIy. 

New me, Still has a beer daily,  once in a blue moon I end up drunk.  I drink "craft beer" only now, but it's because of the joy of discovering it all.  I drink to enjoy the beers qualities,  try something new daily almost.  Usually consumed with dinner and 0 to a few more after.  So like I tell my <girl friend>, "if having a beer or three daily but to enjoy, no intention of getting drunk and dont then maybe I am" I don't crave it or need it to function,  just my preferred drink. I don't drink anything else other than coffee, water and ice tea.

My <girl friend>,  falls under my definition of a drunk.   She drinks ato time once a week, sometimes twice.   Sometimes it's a month between alcohol but outcome is always the same.  She's On A mission to get drunk.  And doesn't stop there.  She has a beer or two it's leading to drinking til 2am/whenever she blacks out n on brink of alcohol poisoning.  Literally freak of nature, it's like Crack she can keep going. So I tell her she's a drunk, When you drink and know end result is a mess.  Her case is underlying issues that lead to problematic drinking.  She thinks she can have a few but same movie everytime

<too long; don't read> a drunk is worse than person drinking  daily.   Most drunks suck,  if you drink daily and aren't an asshole and thats an alcoholic <in my opinion>  that's better.


< Edited to write out text abbreviations in full. Cagey, moderator. >


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