PRONUNCIATION:

(BAK-uh-nal, -nahl) 

MEANING:

noun:
1. A wild and drunken celebration.
2. A drunken reveler.

ETYMOLOGY:

After Bacchus, the god of wine in Roman mythology. His Greek equivalent is Dionysus. Earliest documented use: 1536.

USAGE:

“The move backfired, encouraging instead a bacchanal of booze, followed by a parade of puking.”
Ben Butler; Corporate Delinquents Drink to Better Times; The Age (Melbourne, Australia); Sep 3, 2012.