What does intoxicated mean?
Intoxicated means affected by alcohol or another substance that impairs judgment, coordination, or normal behavior. It can also describe a person or group overwhelmed by a powerful emotion, sensation, or experience: a crowd may be intoxicated with excitement, or a performer may seem intoxicated by the audience's enthusiasm. The literal sense is common in medical, legal, and public-safety contexts, where it is a formal alternative to drunk. Figuratively, the word conveys intense absorption and loss of ordinary restraint, often in response to music, spectacle, passion, or collective excitement. Its historical connection to poison is also reflected in related words such as toxic, toxin, and toxicology. Although intoxicated can sound somewhat dramatic in figurative use, it is also widely used in ordinary reporting and criticism, especially when describing audiences swept up in a compelling performance or event.
adjectiveDrunk or otherwise affected by alcohol or another intoxicant. In figurative use, it describes someone or something overwhelmed by a powerful emotion, idea, or influence.
- Affected by alcohol or another intoxicant to the point of impaired judgment or behavior.
- Overwhelmed by an intense emotion, experience, or influence.
"The crowd became intoxicated with excitement as the band took the stage."
"The driver was arrested after police found him intoxicated."
"The audience was intoxicated by the performance's explosive energy."
Intoxicated can describe not only alcohol-induced drunkenness but also the powerful intoxication of being swept up in music, emotion, or collective excitement.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does intoxicated come from?
Intoxicated comes from the Latin intoxicare, meaning “to poison,” and ultimately from toxicum, a poisonous substance. The word originally referred to poisoning, but by the early 17th century its meaning had developed to include the effects of alcohol. Its modern figurative sense followed the pattern of describing people as overcome or absorbed by an influence. Related English words such as toxic, toxin, and toxicology preserve the same Latin and Greek root associated with poison.
Related word forms
How intoxicated is actually used
In its literal sense, intoxicated is formal and often used in official, legal, or safety-related contexts. Its figurative sense is common in journalism, criticism, and literary writing, where it suggests being overwhelmed rather than necessarily experiencing alcohol.
Easily confused with intoxicated
Both words mean affected by alcohol or another intoxicant, but inebriated is more formal and often emphasizes drunkenness.