billingsgate

noun

coarsely or vulgarly abusive language.

Origin:
1645–55; orig. the kind of speech often heard at Billingsgate, a London fish market at the gate of the same name

Synonyms
vituperation, vilification, invective, scurrility, vulgarity.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins

World English Dictionary

billingsgate (ˈbɪlɪŋzˌɡeɪt)

—n
	obscene or abusive language

[C17: after Billingsgate, which was notorious for such language]

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Billingsgate is always a great word to know.

So is bezoar. Does it mean:

a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.

an extraordinary or unusual thing, person, or event; an exceptional example or instance.

LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

Billingsgate (ˈbɪlɪŋɡzˌɡeɪt)

—n
	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 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

billingsgate

1670s, the kind of coarse, abusive language once used by women in the Billingsgate market (mid-13c., not exclusively a fish market until late 17c.) on the River Thames below London Bridge.

"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]

The place name is O.E. Billingesgate, "gate of (a man called) Billing;" the "gate" probably being a gap in the Roman river wall.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Encyclopedia

billingsgate

former London market (closed 1982). It was situated in the City of London at the north end of London Bridge beside The Monument, which commemorates the outbreak of the Great Fire of September 1666.

Learn more about Billingsgate with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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Matching Quote

"When the committee from Plymouth had purchased the territory of Eastham of the Indians, "it was demanded, who laid claim to Billingsgate?" which was understood to be all that part of the Cape north of what they had purchased. "The answer was, there was not any who owned it. 'Then,' said the committee, 'that land is ours.' The Indians answered, that it was." This was a remarkable assertion and admission. The Pilgrims appear to have regarded themselves as Not Any's representatives. Perhaps this was the first instance of that quiet way of "speaking for" a place not yet occupied, or at least not improved as much as it may be, which their descendants have practiced, and are still practicing so extensively. Not Any seems to have been the sole proprietor of all America before the Yankees. But history says, that when the Pilgrims had held the lands of Billingsgate many years, at length, "appeared an Indian, who styled himself Lieutenant Anthony," who laid claim to them, and of him they bought them. Who knows but a Lieutenant Anthony may be knocking at the door of the White House some day? At any rate, I know that if you hold a thing unjustly, there will surely be the devil to pay at last."

-Henry David Thoreau

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billingsgate

bil·lings·gate