from children and drunks you will hear the truth
The quenching of thirst is another sensation that brings out evocative descriptions. In Chilean Spanish they say they are tener mas sed que piojo de muneca, thirstier than a louse on a doll; or again, in more contemporary usage, to alla hippy, than the towel of a hippy:
tarfa (Hausa, Nigeria) to pour out drop by drop
gargalacar (Portuguese) to drink from the bottle
funda (Swahili) to fill the mouth with water until the cheeks are distended
srann (Gaelic) a drink as deep as one’s breath will permit
ngalela (Setswana, Botswana) to drink and drain the contents of a container in one go
avoir la dalle en pente (French) to have the throat on a slant (in order to be able to drink constantly)
The men of the African Toubari and Massa tribes observe a rite called gourouna in which they retire for several months from ordinary pursuits and restraints and drink prodigious amounts of milk.
No one should boire en Suisse (French), drink alone in secret (literally, drinking in the Swiss way). It’s always healthier to share the experience:
gonets (Russian) one sent to buy alcohol for friends (literally, a herald)
chistra (Breton, France) to go from farm to farm and ask for cider
cayetanas (Mexican Spanish) a code word for apple cider disguised in a beer bottle, ordered by cabaret hostesses who don’t want to get drunk
afdrinken (Dutch) let’s have a drink and be friends
glaoch (Irish) the act of calling for a round of drinks at a pub
Bob (Dutch) the designated driver, the one who sticks to one beer and drives everybody home from wherever they’ve been partying (Bob was the name used originally in a famous anti-drink-drive campaign)
Soft drinks will satisfy our thirst, but are never as exciting as those which are a bit stronger. It’s surely no coincidence that most of the best words about drinks and drinking involve alcohol. As the literal meaning of the Amerindian Mingo word for alcohol, teka’niköёtényös, has it, it changes minds from one way to another: whether it’s beer you’re drinking…
sampa (Rukwangali, Namibia) to taste beer with one’s finger
bufferbiertje (Dutch) the beer that is standing next to the beer you’re drinking and serves as a buffer in case you finish drinking your beer before you have a chance to get the barman’s attention (literally, buffer beer)
der Diesel (German) a mixture of beer and cola
Around the world the commonest drinking toast is to good health: Na zdrayje (Slovenian), Salud (Spanish), Saúde (Brazilian Portuguese), Kia Ora (Maori), Egészségedre (Hungarian), Gezondheid (Flemish). The Ukrainians take this to the next level with Budmo!, which means ‘let us live forever!’
In contrast, the Scandinavian drinking toast Skål! (pronounced ‘skoal’) has a much more macabre background, as it originally meant ‘skull’. The word is alleged to have come down from a custom practised by the warlike Vikings who used the dried-out skulls of their enemies as drinking mugs.
… or something rather more powerful:
Dreimännerwein (German) a wine so disgusting it takes three men to drink it (two men to make you drink it – you are the third)
kadamsana (Malawi) a very strong home-made spirit (literally, that which brings darkness during the day – aptly describing its knock-out effects)
The Russians, in particular, have a fine set of words for the many styles of tippling:
pogoda shepchet to take time off from work, or a desire to get drunk (literally, the weather is whispering)
busat’ to drink alone
deryabnut’ to drink quickly in order to warm up
gorlo to drink from the bottle
vspryskivat’ to drink in celebration of a holiday or a new purchase (literally, to besprinkle)
daganyat’ sya to drink in order to get drunk, to try to catch up with the amount of drinking that others have already done
otglyantsevat’ to drink beer or wine after vodka (literally, to gloss a photo print)
ostogrammit’sya to drink 100 grams of vodka as a remedy for a hangover
full (Norwegian) drunk
grogi (Finnish) whisky and soda
pickle (Chilean Spanish) a person who drinks too much
jaw (Zarma, Nigeria) to be thirsty
And all languages have evocative expressions for being drunk…
sternhagelvoll (German) full of stars and hail
rangi-changi (Nepalese) slightly too multi-coloured
être rond comme une bille (French) to be as round as a marble
redlös (Swedish) ride free
andar cacheteando la banqueta (Mexican Spanish) to go along with one’s cheek on the pavement
… and for the inevitable results of overdoing it:
khukhurhuteka (Tsonga, South Africa) to walk uncertainly, as a drunk man among people seated on the floor
midàbodàboka (Malagasy, Madagascar) to fall over frequently, as drunken men or people on a slippery road
mawibi (Ojibway, North America) drunken weeping
Backhendlfriedhof (Austrian German) a beer belly (literally, cemetery for fried chickens)
ne govori ou samoi muzh piatnisa (Russian) a shrug of understanding when sharing someone else’s problems (literally, no need to explain, my husband is a drunk)
For the French you are as sober as un chameau (a camel) but as drunk as un cochon (a pig), une grive (a thrush), or even une soupe (a soup). In Lithuanian you can also be drunk as a pig (kiaulė), or then again as a bee (bitelė) or a shoemaker (šiaučius). Elsewhere you can be drvo pijan (Macedonian) drunk as a tree; jwei ru ni (Mandarin) drunk as mud; orracho como una uva (Cuban Spanish) drunk as a grape; bull som en kaja (Swedish) drunk as a jackdaw; itdek mast (Uzbek) drunk as a dog; or einen Affen sitzen haben (German) to be dead drunk (literally, to have a monkey sit on one).
It’s only when you get home that you may start to wonder what on earth possessed you:
rhwe (Tsonga, South Africa) to sleep on the floor without a mat and usually drunk and naked
gidravlicheskiy budil’nik (Russian) a full bladder (literally, an hydraulic alarm clock)
sasamudilo (Ndebele, Southern Africa) a drink of beer in the morning after a debauch, a pick-me-up
peragar (Byelorussian) the residual taste of alcohol in the mouth
And all drinking cultures have inventive expressions for the horrors of the morning after:
avoir la gueule de bois (French) to have a wooden mouth
babalasi (Venda, South Africa) a trembling hangover
futsukayoi (Japanese) a hangover (literally, second day drunk)
winderdgriep (Afrikaans) a hangover (literally, vineyard flu)
einen Kater haben (German) to have a hangover (literally, to have a tomcat)
scimmia (Italian) to have a hangover (literally, a monkey)
paid â chodi pais ar ô1 piso (Welsh) don’t lift a petticoat after peeing
kusat sebe lokti (Russian) to bite one’s elbows
nasi sudah menjadi bubur (Indonesian) the rice has become porridge
eső után köpönyeg (Hungarian) coat after rain