λιάρδα – liardha
One of the big societal changes over the past thirty years in Greece is the increase in alcohol intake among young adults. They seem to drink as much as their northwest European counterparts. In upmarket “pubs”, however, where a beer can cost as much as €5 or €6 for a half litre, the cash-strapped youngsters will nurse a beer or other beverage for an hour or more.
For the older generation alcohol is usually taken along with a meal when they go to a taverna with friends or family. Even in the male-dominated kafeneia, drink is often accompanied by an hors d’oeuvre (called a meze [μεζέ] in Greek). Overall, Greeks have a healthier attitude to alcohol than the Irish or the British. People staggering along the road on a Friday or Saturday night is still a rare sight. Notwithstanding this comparative sobriety, there is no shortage for words meaning “drunk” and λιάρδα is one of the many.
I first heard word when my interlocutor used it when saying that Friday night was his mate’s night for getting hammered — γίνεται λιάρδα κάθε Παρασκευή. The standard words are μεθυσμένος and πιωμένος (lexically and grammatically the same as the English “drunk”).
“Drunk” (if talking about one person is often preceded by έγινε (he/she got) or είναι (he/she is). Below is a short list with English approximations where possible
έγινε/είναι λιάρδα (maybe from an Albanian borrowing αλιάρδα meaning a kind of garlic spread). Metaphors involving losing all muscular control are quite common as in λιάρδα and the first two below.
λιώμα ( from λιώνω = melt)
αλοιφή (an ointment or a spread)
στουπί (literally blotting paper. Think of the now dated British English “blotto”).
σκνίπα (literally a gnat. It makes me think of the expression that was popular in the 70s – pissed as a newt.)
τύφλα (blindness – οften τύφλα στο μεθύσι – blind drunk)
Expressions are more vulgar now than in my youth. Accordingly, I found two expressions which I think would best be translated as shit-faced or rat-arsed:
σκατά (shit)
χέσμα (shit)
If you can read Greek, this article will give you a lot more expressions: