Intoxication

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ɪntɑksɪˈkeɪʃən/

Definitions

1. A state of impaired physical and mental control caused by consuming alcohol or drugs
2. A condition where a person experiences a significant alteration in mental and physical function due to the effects of drugs or alcohol
3. The mental and physical condition that arises after using alcohol or drugs and results in reduced coordination and judgment

Etymology: Before it described drunkenness, the root behind this word meant poison. The ancient Greek "toxikon" was poison for arrows, from "toxon," meaning bow, since archers dipped their points in poison. Latin borrowed the idea as "toxicum," and medieval Latin formed "intoxicare," to poison, by adding the prefix "in-." English "intoxicate" kept that poisoning sense for a while before it came to mean making someone drunk. The "poison" meaning survives in the related "toxic," which stayed closer to the original Greek sense. The ending "-ation" is a common suffix that turns a verb into a noun for an action or state, so "intoxication" names the condition produced by intoxicating.

Synonyms: inebriation, drunkenness, exhilaration, euphoria, high

Antonyms: sober, clear-headed, lucidity, abstinence, sobriety