sa.va denotes drinking wine or strong drink, and in one passive form being soaked like liquor.

The predominant use depicts drinking wine or strong drink, whether as an invitation, a group identified by drinking wine, or an individual whose drinking is linked with dispossession. A passive participle depicts people as soaked like liquor.

1. Drinking wine or strong drink · dominant

   In Isaiah 56:12, the Qal cohortative occurs in an invitation to take wine and drink strong drink; the APB renders the clause, "Come, let us take wine, and let us imbibe strong drink." In Proverbs 23:20 and Proverbs 23:21, Qal active participles identify those who drink wine and the individual drinker; the APB renders "those who imbibe wine" and "the imbiber" within warnings about their outcome.

   Isaiah 56:12Proverbs 23:20Proverbs 23:21
2. Being soaked like liquor · rare

   In Nahum 1:10, the Qal passive participle describes people who are entangled like thorns and compared with being soaked like liquor; the APB renders the comparison, "soaked like liquor."

   Nahum 1:10

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB presents the active and cohortative forms with "imbibe" or "imbiber" in Isaiah 56:12 and Proverbs 23:20 and Proverbs 23:21, while Nahum 1:10 has "soaked like liquor." These renderings confirm the clauses rather than establish a separate English equivalent for every form.