Researchers, subjects, men and women differ in their definitions of certain drinking phrases and behaviors, which may possibly lead to problems in treatment, a new study from the University of Missouri finds.

Health Day News reported Dec. 15 that while researchers attempt to use objective language to describe levels of intoxication, drinkers' interpretations differ widely.

Study author Ash Levitt and colleagues asked subjects to complete two Web-based surveys regarding their understanding and familiarity with certain synonyms for intoxication. The researchers found noticeable differences in language between men and women.

"We found that intoxication-related terms reflected either moderate or heavy levels of intoxication, and that 'drunk' reflected a level of intoxication somewhere between moderate and heavy," Levitt said. "Men tended to use heavy-intoxication words more than women, which were also relatively more forceful in their tone, such as 'hammered.' Women tended to use moderate intoxication words more than men, which were also relatively more euphemistic, such as 'tipsy.'

"This is similar to other gender differences in slang usage, for example, men 'sweat' and women 'glow.'"

The researchers also found that most women ages 17-24 used the word "tipsy" to describe imbibing, on average, four drinks over two hours -- a level that meets binge-drinking criteria for females, said Levitt.

"Therefore, women could be binge drinking while psychologically perceiving their level of intoxication as being 'tipsy' or relatively benign, as opposed to heavier levels of intoxication that would be described with less euphemistic terms, such as 'hammered' or 'wasted,'" said Levitt. "Such a perception could potentially mislead women, for example, to feel as though they are capable of driving after drinking because they are 'only tipsy.'"

The findings were published online in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research.