definitions

billingsgate

[ bil-ingz-geyt or, esp. British, -git ]
/ ˈbɪl ɪŋzˌgeɪt or, esp. British, -gɪt /
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noun

coarsely or vulgarly abusive language.

RELATED WORDS

obloquy, scurrility, vulgarity, revilement, abuse, invective, ribaldry, reviling

Nearby words

billing, billing cycle, billing machine, billings, billings method, billingsgate, billion, billionaire, billiton, billman, billon

Origin of billingsgate

First recorded in 1645–55; orig. the kind of speech often heard at Billingsgate, a London fish market at the gate of the same name
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for billingsgate

British Dictionary definitions for billingsgate (1 of 2)

billingsgate

/ (ˈbɪlɪŋzˌɡeɪt) /

noun

obscene or abusive language

Word Origin for billingsgate

C17: after Billingsgate, which was notorious for such language

British Dictionary definitions for billingsgate (2 of 2)

Billingsgate

/ (ˈbɪlɪŋɡzˌɡeɪt) /

noun

the largest fish market in London, on the N bank of the River Thames; moved to new site at Canary Wharf in 1982 and the former building converted into offices
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