firewater

1. (informal) High-proof alcoholic beverage, especially whiskey (especially in the context of its sale to or consumption by Native Americans).Examples: "High Jack had been drinking too much rum ever since we landed in Boca. You know how an Indian is—the palefaces fixed his clock when they introduced him to firewater."; "Four polite Englishmen in their middle 20s, feigning like firewater drunks in a Eugene O'Neill play: it's exactly the stuff that makes their detractors groan."Synonyms: adult beverage, alcohol, bevvy, booze, carouse, drink, grog, libationcountableinformaluncountable

2. (especially manufacturing) Water for use in firefighting.Examples: "A continuously circulated firewater line supplies a deluge cooling system in each gathering center for fire containment."; "A break in a firewater line at BP Whiting Refinery caused water with an oil-like sheen to spread outside the refinery's walls along a section of Indianapolis Boulevard Tuesday night."countableespeciallyuncountable

3. (obsolete) Synonym of alkahest.Synonyms: alkahestcountableobsoleteuncountable