four sheets to the wind
1
9.9
- idiom
- UK
- She always becomes four sheets to the wind at weddings, dancing on the tables and laughing.
Examples
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By the end of the party, everyone was four sheets to the wind and singing loudly.
-
Until seeing these pictures, I never understood why he would not talk about his experiences unless he was four sheets to the wind.
Blog text (11) -
After a few too many drinks, he was four sheets to the wind and stumbling down the street.
Synonyms
∞
1.6
Having too much alcohol makes your body and mind not work normally
44
4.2
Unable to control your actions because of alcohol or drugs
8
6.5
To be very drunk after drinking too much alcohol
4
8.9
Too much alcohol makes a person very unsteady and unable to think clearly
1
9.9
A person who is very drunk and cannot find their way home
1
8.4
Very drunk from drinking alcohol
Very drunk after drinking a lot of alcohol
Drunk after drinking too much alcohol
Antonyms
How Drunk
Surface Forms
Morphology
4 + sheets + to + the + wind
The literal meanings of 'four', 'sheets', 'to', 'the', and 'wind' give no obvious clue to the meaning 'extremely drunk'—the phrase is historically nautical/idiomatic and its sense cannot be compositionally derived from the parts. This is a language-specific idiom whose meaning is unpredictable for a B1 learner who only knows the constituent words, so it should be judged opaque.
Etymology
Four sheets to the wind comes from old sailors. A 'sheet' is the rope that holds a sail, and if several sheets are loose the sail will flap in the wind and the ship will move badly, like a person who is unsteady. That's why the phrase means 'very drunk'.