to drink under the table
- idiom
- Informal
:
beber más que
- He can drink under the table without getting drunk!
Examples
-
Can you really drink under the table like that?
-
After decades as a bartender, he could easily drink under the table even the regulars.
-
He claimed he could drink under the table anyone at the party.
-
She tried to drink under the table her friends, but had to give up halfway through the night.
-
He claimed he could drink under the table anyone at the party.
-
After decades as a bartender, he could easily drink under the table even the regulars.
-
She tried to drink under the table her friends, but had to give up halfway through the night.
Synonyms
2
6.9
To drink more alcohol than another person
Antonyms
How Much
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to outdrink someone' is not directly derivable from the literal words 'drink' + 'under the table' — a B1 learner who knows the constituents would likely interpret a physical location (drinking beneath a table). The phrase is conventionalized with an idiomatic sense that cannot be predicted from the parts, so learners need prior exposure to understand it.
Etymology
Drink under the table gives a clear image: one person can drink so much at the table that the other ends up 'under the table', too drunk to sit. That's why it means 'to drink more alcohol than someone else'.