also: さけむし · しゅちゅう
noun
mythical alcohol-loving spirit inside a person
From the Chinese story 'Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio' (1740). A legendary creature said to live in a heavy drinker's body, causing an insatiable desire for alcohol; also fabled to turn water into wine.
酒虫は中国の怪談に登場する、酒好きを引き起こす虫だと言われている。
The shuchū is said to be a worm that appears in Chinese ghost stories and causes a love of alcohol.
From Chinese 酒虫 (jiǔchóng), literally 'alcohol bug/worm'. The concept originates from a story in Pu Songling's 'Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio' (Liaozhai Zhiyi).