I will never again taste a drop of spirit.

My comments:

A drop of alcohol, in other words.

Spirit is a colloquialism for any strong alcoholic drink, such as whisky and brandy.

Vodka? Yes.

Maotai? Assuredly.

These strong liquors are called spirits because they get you high – high in heartbeat and spirit, i.e. mood.

In other words, they raise your spirits, making you cheerful.

For a time, of course. Overdo it and the opposite effect emerges. And people always talk about the morning after.

It is perhaps for this very reason that the speaker vows to never again “taste a drop”.

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本文僅代表作者本人觀點，與本網立場無關。歡迎大家討論學術問題，尊重他人，禁止人身攻擊和發布一切違反國家現行法律法規的內容。

About the author:

Zhang Xin（張欣） has been with China Daily since 1988, when he graduated from Beijing Foreign Studies University. Write him at: zhangxin@chinadaily.com.cn, or raise a question for potential use in a future column.