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Definition of 'bilge'

Word Frequency

bilge

(bɪldʒ )
Word forms: plural bilges
1. countable noun
The bilge or the bilges are the flat bottom part of a ship or boat.
2. uncountable noun
If you say that something written or spoken is bilge, you mean that you think it is untrue or silly.
[informal, disapproval]
I supported us by writing bilge for women's magazines.
Synonyms: trash, rubbish, rot [informal], garbage [informal]   More Synonyms of bilge
COBUILD Advanced English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word Frequency

bilge in British

(bɪldʒ )
noun
1. nautical
the parts of a vessel's hull where the vertical sides curve inwards to form the bottom
2. (often plural)
the parts of a vessel between the lowermost floorboards and the bottom
3. Also called: bilgewater
the dirty water that collects in a vessel's bilge
4. informal
silly rubbish; nonsense
5. 
the widest part of the belly of a barrel or cask
verb
6. (intransitive) nautical
(of a vessel) to take in water at the bilge
7. (transitive) nautical
to damage (a vessel) in the bilge, causing it to leak
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Derived forms
bilgy (ˈbilgy)
  adjective
Word origin of 'bilge'
C16: probably a variant of bulge
Word Frequency

bilge in American

(bɪldʒ ; bilj)
noun
1. 
the bulge of a barrel or cask
2. 
the rounded, lower exterior part of a ship's hull
3. 
a.  [also pl.]
the bottommost interior part of a ship
b. 
water that seeps or leaks in, collects there, and becomes stagnant and dirty
also bilge water
4.  Slang
worthless or silly talk or writing; nonsense
verb transitiveWord forms: bilged or ˈbilging
5. 
to damage the bottom of (a ship) so that water enters
verb intransitive
6. 
to suffer such damage
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
Word origin of 'bilge'
var. of bulge

Example sentences containing 'bilge'

These examples have been automatically selected and may contain sensitive content. Read more…
The bilge pump would take care of the disposal problems provided the Greenpeace types weren't looking. Terman, Douglas CORMORANT (2003)The builders of Night Watch had contrived to place the diesel engine in the most inaccessible part of the bilge. Terman, Douglas CORMORANT (2003)
Then it was just a matter of how big the leak was versus the efficiency of Thorn's bilge pump. James W. Hall BLACKWATER SOUND (2003)

Trends of 'bilge'

Used Occasionally. bilge is one of the 30000 most commonly used words in the Collins dictionary

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Nearby words of 'bilge'

  • bilection
  • bilestone
  • bilevel
  • bilge
  • bilge keel
  • bilgewater
  • bilgy

  • All ENGLISH words that begin with 'B'

Related Terms of 'bilge'

  • bilge keel
  • bilge chock
  • bilge piece

Source

Definition of bilge from the Collins English Dictionary

Quotation marks (‘ ’) or (“ ”)

Direct speech Direct speech gives the actual words that a speaker used. It is common in novels and other writing where the actual words of a speaker are quoted(see Reporting speech). The words spok...
Read more about 'Quotation marks (‘ ’) or (“ ”)'
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Scrabble score for 'bilge': 8
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