Library / English Dictionary

SPIRITS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

An alcoholic beverage that is distilled rather than fermented

Synonyms:

booze; hard drink; hard liquor; John Barleycorn; liquor; spirits; strong drink

Classified under:

Nouns denoting foods and drinks

Hypernyms ("spirits" is a kind of...):

alcohol; alcoholic beverage; alcoholic drink; inebriant; intoxicant (a liquor or brew containing alcohol as the active agent)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "spirits"):

aqua vitae; ardent spirits (strong distilled liquor or brandy)

akvavit; aquavit (Scandinavian liquor usually flavored with caraway seeds)

arak; arrack (any of various strong liquors distilled from the fermented sap of toddy palms or from fermented molasses)

bitters (alcoholic liquor flavored with bitter herbs and roots)

brandy (distilled from wine or fermented fruit juice)

gin (strong liquor flavored with juniper berries)

ouzo (a Greek liquor flavored with anise)

rum (liquor distilled from fermented molasses)

schnapps; schnaps (any of various strong liquors especially a Dutch spirit distilled from potatoes)

mescal (a colorless Mexican liquor distilled from fermented juices of certain desert plants of the genus Agavaceae (especially the century plant))

tequila (Mexican liquor made from fermented juices of an agave plant)

vodka (unaged colorless liquor originating in Russia)

whiskey; whisky (a liquor made from fermented mash of grain)

firewater (any strong spirits (such as strong whisky or rum))

lacing (a small amount of liquor added to a food or beverage)

Derivation:

spiritous; spirituous (containing or of the nature of alcohol)

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Present simple (third person singular) of the verb spirit

Credits

 Context examples: 

In the morning the king came, and when he saw him lying there on the ground, he thought the evil spirits had killed him and he was dead.

(Fairy Tales, by The Brothers Grimm)

They were all in the best of spirits, and laughed and chatted together.

(The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum)

A resemblance in good humour and good spirits had recommended her and Lydia to each other, and out of their three months' acquaintance they had been intimate two.

(Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen)

I never was afraid; but spirits are new to me, and—

(Rodney Stone, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Your people were in their usual spirits?

(His Last Bow, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

"Mayhap they be not evil, but good, these spirits," others said.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

Already our hearts yearn and our spirits fly towards the great mother city which holds so much that is dear to us.

(The Lost World, by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle)

Their spirits were in general exhausted; and to determine whether the day had afforded most pleasure or pain, might occupy the meditations of almost all.

(Mansfield Park, by Jane Austen)

She appeared quite heart-broken over the discovery, but recovered her spirits by coiling down tackles and halyards and all stray ropes.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

Geriatric Depression Scale, Short Form (GDS-SF) Are you in good spirits most of the time?

(GDS-SF - Good Spirits Most of Time, NCI Thesaurus)