noun
sot
SAWT/sˈɔt/
A person who is habitually drunk.
The novel portrayed the landlord as a hopeless sot.
Etymology
Sot originally meant a fool or stupid person, then narrowed to someone stupefied by drink or habitually drinking to excess. The French ancestor’s deeper origin is uncertain.
More examples
- The old sot staggered away from the tavern.
- Calling him a sot reduced his troubles to an insult.
- The character's neighbors dismissed him as a sot.
Forms
sot · sots
Similar words
- drunkard
- Both are disparaging terms for a habitual drinker; sot is more old-fashioned.
- drinker
- Drinker does not by itself imply habitual intoxication or condemnation.