酗酒

• Pinyin: xù jiǔ
• Hanzi breakdown: 酗 = 酉 (alcohol radical) + 凶 (violent/fierce — aggressive drunkenness); 酒 = 氵+ 酉 (alcohol/liquor)

Meaning

To drink excessively; to be an alcoholic; heavy drinking. Habitual or uncontrolled consumption of alcohol to a harmful degree.

Describes a pattern of harmful excessive drinking, stronger than 喝酒 (to drink) and 贪杯 (to enjoy drinking too much). Used in medical, legal, and social contexts. 酗酒驾车 (drunk driving) is a common legal compound.

Examples

1. 长期酗酒严重损害了他的肝脏功能，医生警告他必须立即戒酒方能避免更严重的后果。 Years of heavy drinking seriously damaged his liver function; the doctor warned that he must quit immediately to avoid even more serious consequences.
2. 酗酒驾车不仅威胁驾驶人自身的安全，更对道路上的无辜行人构成极大危险。 Drunk driving not only endangers the driver’s own safety but also poses a major threat to innocent pedestrians on the road.
3. 家庭暴力案件的统计数据显示，酗酒是诱发家庭冲突的主要因素之一。 Statistics on domestic violence cases show that heavy drinking is one of the main factors that triggers family conflict.

Usage Guide

Context: health, law, social issues, family

Tone: critical

Do Say

• 政府加大了对酗酒驾车行为的执法力度，并提高了相应的法律处罚标准以威慑潜在违法者。(The government has intensified enforcement against drunk driving and raised the corresponding legal penalties to deter potential offenders.)
• 酗酒不仅损害个人健康，还会对家庭关系和社会秩序造成严重的负面影响。(Heavy drinking not only harms personal health but also inflicts serious negative consequences on family relationships and social order.)

Don't Say

• 他酗酒了一点 — 酗酒 implies excessive, harmful drinking as a pattern; for having a little too much on one occasion use 喝多了; 酗酒 cannot be modified by 一点

Origin & History

酗 = 酉 (wine vessel/alcohol) + 凶 (fierce/violent) — violent drinking behaviour; 酒 = alcohol/spirits

Cultural Context

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal