You will find a few interpretations of the saying but going back to its origins: The original form of the expression was three sheets in the wind (not "to"), which literally means 'with the sail completely unsecured', and thus flapping about, and with the boat itself thus unsteady. (Sails can be secured with varying numbers of sheets, but the square-rigged boats used at the time when the expression became current usually had three sheets.) There are many other nautical expressions for drunkenness, such as "with decks awash," "half seas over," and "over the bay," but few of them have spread so thoroughly to the mainstream. Anyway sorry for hijacking the thread I blame the wine not the whisky. Regards Hugh
The sheet is the rope attached to the clew of the sail used for trimming sail. If the sheet is quite free, leaving the sail to flap without restraint, the sheet is said to be "in the wind", and " a sheet in the wind" is a colloquial nautical expression for being tipsy. Thus to have "three sheets in the wind" is to be very drunk.
