pissed as a newt
Drunk beyond reason
Pissed as a newt means extremely drunk.
This British slang expression, like its cousin *blind drunk*, uses an unlikely animal comparison to emphasize the degree of intoxication.
The newt has no particular association with alcohol; the phrase likely caught on simply because it sounds amusing.
He came home pissed as a newt after the office party.
Americans more often say *drunk as a skunk* for similar effect.
Intoxicated by alcohol
- hammeredSeverely intoxicated or pounded
- wastedUsed without good result
- plasteredExtremely intoxicated
- sloshedVery intoxicated
blotto · sozzled · legless · trolleyed · rat-arsed · bladdered · paralytic · three sheets to the wind
Comparison via "as"
- British slangInformal UK vocabulary
- colloquialismCasual conversational expression
- expressionConveyed thought or feeling
- sayingShort, wise expression
figure of speech · pub talk · vernacular · informal · humorous · exaggeration · vivid imagery · wordplay
inebriated
Intoxicated by alcohol
sloshed · blotto · sozzled · legless · trolleyed · rat-arsed · bladdered · paralytic · three sheets to the wind · drunk as a skunk
simile
Comparison via "as"
- British slangInformal UK vocabulary
- colloquialismCasual conversational expression
- expressionConveyed thought or feeling
saying · figure of speech · pub talk · vernacular · informal · humorous · exaggeration · vivid imagery · wordplay · euphemism
pissed as a newtsober
Free from intoxication
sober as a judge · bone-dry · teetotal · on the wagon · dry
pissed as a newtlucid
Mentally sharp and comprehensible
clear-headed · sharp · alert · composed · compos mentis