tipsy

adjective

tip·​sy ˈtip-sē 

tipsier; tipsiest

1

: unsteady, staggering, or foolish from the effects of liquor : fuddled

2

: unsteady, askew

a tipsy angle

tipsily

ˈtip-sə-lē 

adverb

tipsiness

ˈtip-sē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• besotted
• blasted [slang]
• blind
• blitzed [slang]
• blotto [slang]
• bombed
• boozy
• canned [slang]
• cockeyed
• crocked
• drunk
• drunken
• fried
• gassed
• hammered [slang]
• high
• impaired
• inebriate
• inebriated
• intoxicated
• juiced [slang]
• lit
• lit up
• loaded [slang]
• looped
• oiled [slang]
• pickled
• pie-eyed
• plastered
• potted [slang]
• ripped [slang]
• sloshed [slang]
• smashed [slang]
• sottish
• soused
• sozzled
• squiffed
• squiffy
• stewed
• stiff
• stinking [slang]
• stoned
• tanked [slang]
• tiddly [chiefly British]
• tight
• wasted [slang]
• wet
• wiped out [slang]

Examples of tipsy in a Sentence

I got a little tipsy at the party last night.

our uncle had too much to drink at the wedding and got a little tipsy

Recent Examples on the Web

Gently fold the tipsy cherries into the mousse and add some of the remaining liquor (if desired). —Catharine Kaufman, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Mar. 2025

One day, the resort hosts a grand festival and the younger daughter, slightly tipsy, boards her family’s yacht and sails out, before waking up the next morning and finding the prince onboard. —Sara Merican, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2025

Darkly tipsy aromas that include rum, fruit cake, maraschino cherries, slight petrol and carrot cake. —Tom Mullen, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2025

An arrangement by Thomas Adès of Conlon Nancarrow’s Study No. 6, one of his ingenious player-piano exercises, somehow transformed complex rhythmic layerings into a blithe, tipsy rumba. —Zachary Woolfe, New York Times, 20 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

tip entry 1 + -sy (as in tricksy)

First Known Use

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for tipsy

• lithotripsy

Kids Definition

tipsy

adjective

tip·​sy ˈtip-sē 

tipsier; tipsiest

: unsteady or foolish from drinking