non-alcoholic

non-alcoholic — adjective

1. describing a drink that has been made with no alcohol in it, so anyone can safel

1.adjectiveA2
Definition

describing a drink that has been made with no alcohol in it, so anyone can safely drink it, including children, pregnant women, or people who avoid alcohol for personal or religious reasons.

Example

The wedding reception had a separate table for non-alcoholic drinks and juices.

common collocation: non-alcoholic drinks / non-alcoholic beer

Élise ordered a non-alcoholic beer while her friends drank red wine with dinner.

Common collocations
  • non-alcoholic beer
  • non-alcoholic wine
  • non-alcoholic cocktail
  • non-alcoholic drink
  • non-alcoholic beverage
  • non-alcoholic option
Synonyms
  • alcohol-free

    more common on product labels and official descriptions; interchangeable in most everyday contexts

  • soft

    only in the compound 'soft drink', which usually means a carbonated non-alcoholic beverage; not a direct synonym for all drinks

Antonyms
  • alcoholic

    direct opposite; contains alcohol

  • strong

    informal term for drinks with a high alcohol content, e.g. 'strong beer'

Grammar Patterns

non-alcoholic + noun (drink, beer, wine, cocktail)

be + non-alcoholic

Usage Note

Frequently used before drink-related nouns such as beer, wine, cocktail, and beverage. On product labels, 'alcohol-free' is sometimes preferred, though the two terms are largely interchangeable in everyday speech.

Common Mistakes

I would like a non-alcohol beer, please.
I would like a non-alcoholic beer, please.
The adjective form is 'non-alcoholic' (with -ic), not 'non-alcohol'.
This wine is non-alcohol.
This wine is non-alcoholic.
Use the -ic adjective form in predicative position too.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

While 'non-alcoholic' is the most general and widely understood term, 'alcohol-free' carries a more technical or regulatory tone and is commonly seen on packaging and legal disclaimers. 'Soft' is restricted to the fixed expression 'soft drink', which describes carbonated beverages such as cola or lemonade; it cannot replace 'non-alcoholic' in phrases like 'non-alcoholic wine'. 'Non-intoxicating' is a more formal, medical-sounding word that emphasises the physiological effect rather than the ingredient. In everyday conversation, 'non-alcoholic' remains the safest and most natural choice for describing any drink that contains no alcohol.

alcohol-freesoft ↗non-intoxicating

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • non-alcoholic beverage
  • non-alcoholic alternative

Etymology

ArabicMedieval LatinEnglish

Formed by adding the prefix 'non-' (meaning 'not') to the adjective 'alcoholic', which itself comes from 'alcohol' + the adjective suffix '-ic'. The word 'alcohol' entered English through Medieval Latin from Arabic 'al-kuḥl', a fine powder used as eye make-up, which later came to refer to distilled spirits.