billabong

[ bil-uh-bawng, -bong ]

/ ˈbɪl əˌbɔŋ, -ˌbɒŋ /

noun Australian.

a branch of a river flowing away from the main stream but leading to no other body of water; a blind or dead-end channel.

a creek bed holding water only in the rainy season; a dried-up watercourse.

a stagnant backwater or slough formed by receding floodwater.

Nearby words

bill of particulars, bill of quantities, bill of rights, bill of sale, billable, billabong, billander, billbergia, billboard, billbug, billed

Origin of billabong

1830–40; < Wiradjuri bilabaŋ creek that runs only during the rainy season, equivalent to bila river + baŋ possessive suffix

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for billabong

Only, motors and Billabong don't go hand in hand—we've always stuck to horses, haven't we, Mr. Jim?
Back To Billabong|Mary Grant Bruce
But I drove the old buggy away from Billabong, and I'll drive home now.
Back To Billabong|Mary Grant Bruce
No one can say the Billabong representative doesn't look fit.
Back To Billabong|Mary Grant Bruce
It was the third day of the struggle with death over the Hermit's unconscious body, and again twilight was falling upon Billabong.
A Little Bush Maid|Mary Grant Bruce

He's shaping as well as anyone could expect; but he won't always have Billabong at his back.
Back To Billabong|Mary Grant Bruce

British Dictionary definitions for billabong

billabong

/ (ˈbɪləˌbɒŋ) /

noun Australian

a backwater channel that forms a lagoon or pool

a branch of a river running to a dead end

Word Origin for billabong

C19: from a native Australian language, from billa river + bong dead

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for billabong

billabong

Australian, "backwater, stagnant pool," 1865, from Billibang, Aboriginal name of Bell River, from billa "water" + bang, of uncertain meaning.