WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
John′ Bar′leycorn, 
  1. Winea personification of barley as used in malt liquor, of malt liquor itself, or of any intoxicating liquor.
  • 1610–20

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
John Barleycorn
  1. the personification of alcohol, esp of malt spirits
'John Barleycorn' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
London - barleycorn

Forum discussions with the word(s) "John Barleycorn" in the title:


Look up "John Barleycorn" at Merriam-Webster
Look up "John Barleycorn" at dictionary.com
  • Go to Preferences page and choose from different actions for taps or mouse clicks.

In other languages: Spanish | French | Italian | Portuguese | Romanian | German | Dutch | Swedish | Russian | Polish | Czech | Greek | Turkish | Chinese | Japanese | Korean | Arabic

Advertisements
Advertisements
Report an inappropriate ad.
WordReference.com
WORD OF THE DAY
GET THE DAILY EMAIL!

Become a WordReference Supporter to view the site ad-free.