getting wasted

[greenisgood]

In American culture, when is it appropriate to use the phrase - getting wasted? google search result suggest the phrase used in the context of getting intoxicated with alcohol or drugs.

After how many beers or wine glasses would a person say: I was getting wasted at the party?

What is the likely origin of this phrase?

 

[riquecohen]

In American culture, when is it appropriate to use the phrase - getting wasted? google search result suggest the phrase used in the context of getting intoxicated with alcohol or drugs.

After how many beers or wine glasses would a person say: I was getting wasted at the party? I suppose that would vary a great deal from person to person.

What is the likely origin of this phrase?

I can't say. Let's see if anyone else has an idea about its origin.

 

[Barb_D]

It's just "I was wasted."
You can use it in place of "I was very drunk."

Or "You should have better things to do with your weekends than sit around getting wasted."

 

[Tdol]

After how many beers or wine glasses would a person say: I was getting wasted at the party?

Too many- if you're wasted, you're very intoxicated. If you lay waste to something, especially in a war, you destroy it. I guess that the meaning here is similar- it's not just a glass or two, it's very drunk.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Tolerance for alcohol depends on a variety of things: body size, body fat (alcohol is fat soluble), genetics (alcohol dehydrogenase production), and previous alcohol consumption (alcohol dehydrogenase induction).

 

[Jill Dorchester]

"Wasted" usually implies that the person was extremely drunk (or stoned on drugs). After a night of partying, if someone is described as "drunk" it means that they were probably slurring their words, walking a bit unsteadily and laughing uproariously at the least little thing. If they were described as "wasted" it means that they probably eventually passed out and had no recollection the next morning of their behavior at the previous night's party. :drinking:

 

[Barb_D]

I can't quite agree. For sure it means very drunk, but not to the point of passing out and blackouts.

 

[MikeNewYork]

I think there are degrees of "wasted".

 

[emsr2d2]

I agree. I have heard/used "a bit wasted", "fairly wasted", "pretty wasted", "totally wasted" and "completely wasted". I don't think any one of them specifically means passing out or blacking out. For that, I would expect "I was so wasted, I passed out!"

 

[MikeNewYork]

Yes, but before someone passes out, they were completely wasted. It is often a progression.

 

[emsr2d2]

I agree, but if someone simply said "I was completely wasted" last night, I would not assume that they had reached the passing out point.

 

[Tdol]

Neither would I, but they could be describing passing out with those words if they added more context: I was completely wasted last night- woke up on a bench....