intoxicación pública
/intoɡsikaθjon publika/from spelling rules
The English phrase "public intoxication" is translated into Spanish as intoxicación pública.
The phrase refers to the crime of being drunk or under the influence of drugs in a public place. You can describe the act more broadly as estar ebrio en lugares públicos (to be intoxicated in public places) or more informally as estar borracho en público (to be drunk in public).
Which one should you use?
Embriaguez pública and ingesta excesiva de alcohol en lugares públicos are used for more formal contexts, whereas estar borracho en público is used for casual conversation.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In various Latin American countries, the expression Andar tomado en la vía pública is widely used to mean "to be walking drunk in public".
Did you know?
- While intoxicación refers to intoxication in a legal or medical sense, in everyday Spanish it is most commonly used to describe food poisoning, known as intoxicación alimentaria.
- The phrase andar tomado uses the word tomado, which literally means 'taken', suggesting that the alcohol has 'taken hold' of the person's senses.
- Beyond alcohol, the word borracho is commonly used in Spanish to describe someone who is 'drunk' with abstract emotions such as power or love.
Examples in context
- El acusado fue arrestado por embriaguez pública en un parque.The defendant was arrested for public intoxication in a park.
- ¡No puedo creer que Juan ande tomado en la vía pública otra vez!I can't believe Juan is walking drunk in public again!
- Durante las festividades, la policía se enfrenta a un aumento de personas ebrias en lugares públicos.During the festivities, the police face an increase in intoxicated individuals in public places.
Example conversation
Sofía and Javier are talking about a friend's arrest.
- SofíaJavier, ¿sabes qué pasó con Luis?Javier, do you know what happened with Luis?
- JavierSí, lo detuvieron por intoxicación pública.Yes, they detained him for public intoxication.
- Sofía¡Qué horror! ¿Dónde estaba él?How awful! Where was he?
- JavierEstaba gritando en la plaza central.He was shouting in the central plaza.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
