Billingsgate
name, noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 Profane, abusive language; coarse words.
"You wouldn't have believed the billingsgate which poured forth from that boy's mouth."
- 2 foul-mouthed or obscene abuse wordnet
- 1 To use profane, abusive language towards. transitive
"On the other hand, the Englishman has the satisfaction of Billingsgating to his heart's content the highest officials: they accept objurgation with spaniel fawning."
- 1 A ward of the City of London, Greater London, England.
"And vppon fridaye the morowe after brought it vpp to Billynges gate in London"
Example
More examples"You wouldn't have believed the billingsgate which poured forth from that boy's mouth."
Etymology
From the London, England fishmarket Billingsgate: "Billingsgate is the market where the fishwomen assemble to purchase fish; and where, in their dealings and disputes they are somewhat apt to leave decency and good manners a little on the left hand." (Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue, 1811).
Related phrases
More for "billingsgate"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.