How to Write 醉 (zuì) — Meaning “drunk”

Imagine a soldier (卒) who drinks a whole wine jar (酉) and then falls over, completely drunk. Visualize the soldier's legs giving way under the wine jar. This picture helps you recall both the components and the meaning of 'drunk'.

Pay attention to the stroke order: first write the left side 酉 (7 strokes) with its three horizontal lines, then the right side 卒 (8 strokes) starting with a dot on top. A common mistake is making the right side too wide or misplacing the dot above 卒, so keep the left narrow and the right balanced.

酩 (mǐng) is rarely used alone; it only appears in the compound 酩酊 (mǐngdǐng) meaning 'very drunk'. 酪 (lào) means milk products like cheese or yogurt, and has no connection to alcohol. Visually, 醉 has 卒 on the right, 酩 has 名, and 酪 has 各.

醉 is commonly used to describe physical drunkenness (喝醉) or emotional intoxication, such as being lost in music (陶醉). It also appears in the idiom 醉翁之意不在酒, which means someone has a hidden purpose beyond what they appear to be doing.

Common words containing 醉 include: 喝醉 (hē zuì) — To get drunk; 醉酒 (zuì jiǔ) — to be intoxicated; 陶醉 (táo zuì) — to be intoxicated with or revel in.