What does tipsiness mean?
Tipsiness means the condition of being drunk or intoxicated, especially to a slight or noticeable degree. It is most often used when alcohol has affected someone’s balance, speech, judgment, or coordination. The noun is more formal than the everyday adjective tipsy, and it can sound more descriptive or clinical than drunkenness, depending on the context. In expressions such as “slight tipsiness,” the word usually suggests mild intoxication rather than severe drunkenness. However, it can also refer to drunkenness generally when the surrounding language is neutral or serious, as in a report about drink-driving. Tipsiness is useful because it names a temporary physical and mental condition without requiring a judgment about whether a person’s behavior is appropriate. It is also less playful than terms such as “being tipsy” and less blunt than simply saying that someone is drunk.
nounThe state of being slightly or noticeably drunk, especially as a result of alcohol. It can also refer more generally to intoxication or drunkenness.
- The condition of being drunk or intoxicated, especially mildly so.
"Her tipsiness was evident from the way she kept misplacing her words."
"The singer tried to hide her tipsiness during the final interview."
"The report noted the tipsiness of the driver who had been stopped shortly before the crash."
"A little tipsiness is harmless, but driving in that condition is not."
Rare and generally unnecessary; tipsiness is normally treated as an uncountable noun.
"The report documented several episodes of tipsinesses among the guests."
Tipsiness is the formal noun for being tipsy: a precise word for a condition that often gets described with a drink, a stagger, or a funny story.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does tipsiness come from?
The noun tipsiness was formed in English by adding the suffix -ness to the adjective tipsy. Tipsy developed from the older English drinking term tip, “a drink” or “a small quantity of drink,” and is related to words such as tipple, tope, and toper. These forms share a Germanic vocabulary of drinking and intoxication.
How tipsiness is actually used
Somewhat formal or literary compared with the adjective tipsy. It is often used to describe mild intoxication, although it can refer to drunkenness more broadly.
Easily confused with tipsiness
Tipsiness is the noun naming the state of being drunk, while tipsy is the adjective describing someone or something that is drunk or intoxicated.