Meaning & use
toper
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountableold-fashionedliterarydisapproving
A person who habitually drinks a lot of alcohol; a heavy drinker.
Grammar: Almost always found in older books and period writing.
Patterns
- a toper at something
The old toper sat at the end of the bar every evening.
In the novel, the innkeeper is a cheerful toper who never quite falls over.
Neighbors whispered that the retired judge had become a toper.
Word forms
| plural | topers |
|---|
Common combinations
- a confirmed toper
- The colonel was a confirmed toper and rarely sober after noon.
- a hardened toper
- A hardened toper, he emptied the bottle without a word.
- an old toper
- An old toper dozed by the fireplace.
- a village toper
- The village toper was known to every shopkeeper.
Synonyms and how they differ
- drunkard
- Drunkard is more openly critical and common, while toper has a faintly humorous, old-fashioned flavor.
- tippler
- Tippler suggests someone who drinks small amounts often, whereas toper suggests steady heavy drinking.
- boozer
- Boozer is a modern British slang word, while toper belongs to older literature.
- sot
- Sot is even more archaic and harsher, implying someone whose mind is dulled by drink.
Opposites
Word family
- tope verb
- To drink alcohol habitually and heavily; an archaic verb.
Commonly confused: toper or topper?
toper vs topper
A topper is something placed on top, such as a hat or a cake decoration, and is not related to heavy drinking.
Practice
In the old story, the village ______ spent every evening in the tavern with a tankard in his hand.
Choose one answer.
A toper is a habitual heavy drinker. A topper is something placed on top, a teetotaler avoids alcohol, and a tipster gives betting advice.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “toper”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.