This word describes raucous celebrations and drinking parties characterized by excess and loss of self-control. In pagan religious contexts, it could refer to processions honoring Dionysus, but more generally it meant any wild revelry. Paul consistently lists it among 'works of the flesh' (Galatians 5:21) and behaviors incompatible with Christian life (Romans 13:13, 1 Peter 4:3). The word captures not merely social drinking but the abandon and moral chaos associated with drunken parties. The plural form emphasizes repeated participation in such lifestyle patterns rather than isolated incidents.