noun
alcohol
AL-kuh-hawl/ˈælkəhɔːl/
An organic compound with a hydroxyl group attached to saturated carbon.
The beer, wine, and spirits all contain alcohol.
Etymology
The Arabic noun meant the fine metallic powder used as eye makeup. Its meaning broadened to a substance's purified essence or 'spirit'; 'alcohol of wine' then supplied the name for the intoxicating liquid.
In context
they wanted their liquor. They wanted their beer and their whiskey and their alcohol and their wine and all the other things that people like to drink
More examples
- The label states how much alcohol the drink contains.
- The technician cleaned the surface with rubbing alcohol.
- Different alcohols have different chemical properties and uses.
Forms
alcohol · alcohols
alcoholic adjective — Containing or relating to alcohol.
Similar words
- ethanol
- Specifically names the alcohol present in alcoholic drinks.
- spirit
- Usually names a distilled alcoholic drink rather than a chemical class.