Steamboat

Steamboat (adjective / UK & Scottish slang)

(Also heard as: Proper steamboat, Absolute steamboat, Steaming)

Definition: Bladdered, completely hammered, or so heavily drunk that you’re stumbling around and making a total spectacle of yourself.

Pronunciation: /ˈstiːm.bəʊt/

Where It Comes From: Straight out of classic Scottish and Northern British pub culture.

Brits have used the word steaming to describe being blind drunk for generations—riffing on the idea of an old steam engine chugging along out of control, puffing smoke, and letting off reckless amounts of pressure. Adding boat to make “steamboat” turned it into a punchier, rhyming-style extension of being steaming, solidifying it across Scotland and northern towns as the gold standard for describing someone who had way too many pints on a Friday night.

How People Actually Use It: Reserved for the messy end of the drinking spectrum.

You don’t call someone a steamboat if they’ve just had a couple of casual ciders with dinner. It gets rolled out the morning after a chaotic night out when someone had to be physically helped into an Uber, lost their coat, tried dancing on a wobbly table, or fell asleep headfirst in a takeaway box.

Examples in the Wild:

• “He was absolutely steamboat last night, couldn’t even find his front door keys.”

  Translation: “He was excessively drunk and had lost his coordination.”

• “She turned up steamboat to the party before nine o’clock.”

  Translation: “She arrived at the gathering already heavily intoxicated.”

• “One more round of tequila shots and we’re all going to end up proper steamboat.”

  Translation: “If we have another drink, we will all be completely plastered.”

Similar Slang: Steaming, Bladdered, Hammered, Trolleyed, Wasted, Paralytic, Smashed