No effective answers have been gained for the questions "why do alcoholics drink so much," "why can't they stop drinking" or "why can't they learn to drink moderately?" Formulators of such questions have failed to de fine the key word in these questions—drink. Drinking is defined according to a well-established system of knowledge. Then the actions of the alcoholic are compared to this defined behavior system. The two are discovered to be anti thetical rather than similar, or, as some insist, identical. Application of this knowledge to some typical problem situations is suggested.