bilge en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /bɪld͡ʒ/
- (US) audio
Etymology
Likely derived from bulge. Compare Middle English bulgen (“to ground or scuttle a ship”).
Meanings
- (countable, uncountable) The rounded portion of a ship's hull, forming a transition between the bottom and the sides.
-
(countable, uncountable) The lowest inner part of a ship's hull, where water accumulates.
[…] water deluged into the cockpit and Niagaraed into the bilge. Only constant use of the pump kept the floorboards from going adrift.
1943, MotorBoating, volume 71, number 1, page 134:
- (uncountable) The water accumulated in the bilge; bilge water.
-
(slang, uncountable) Stupid talk or writing; nonsense.
complete bilge
That they can, with a straight face, praise it as good scholarship calls into question whether they can any longer recognize even passable scholarship. More likely, however, they know bilge when they see it—but laud this particular bilge nonetheless because it furthers a common partisan interest.
2026, Michael Anton, “Fury Road”, in The Claremont Review of Books, The Claremont Institute, →ISSN, →OCLC:talk bilge
"The whole thing is the most absolute bilge and a disgrace to our legislature."
1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “In which the Notorious Criminal Gets what the British Law Considers to be His Deserts”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019:
- (countable, uncountable) The bulging part of a barrel or cask.
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| bilges | Number=Plur | lexicographic |
Deriveds
bilgeway · bilgy · bilge-free
Translations (57)
fr eau de cale (bilge water) · scn sintina (bilge water) · el σεντίνα (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · scn sintina (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · lv bilžas (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · ar جَمَّة (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · la sentina (bilge water) · scn babbarijati (nonsense) · nl kielruimte (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · ca aigua de sentina (bilge water) · fi palle (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · fi pilssivesi (bilge water) · et pilsivesi (bilge water) · ru дни́ще (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · fr fond de cale (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · cs kecy (nonsense) · cs žvásty (nonsense) · ca estirabot (nonsense) · nl pastoor (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · sv hålskepp (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · nl lensruimte (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · pl zenza (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · et pilss (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · cs dno lodi (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · fr sentine (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · scn fissarìi (nonsense) · nl buik (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · el σεντινόνερο (bilge water) · mi riu (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · pl zęza (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · it sentina (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · it idiozie (nonsense) · lv bilžu ūdens (bilge water) · mi pāwai (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · ca sentina (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · mi papakairā (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · it fesserie (nonsense) · he שִׁפּוּלַיִם (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · da bundvand (bilge water) · sv kölrum (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · sh kaljuža (bilge water) · gl varenga (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · cs outor (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · pl obło (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · it sentina (bilge water) · sv kölvatten (bilge water) · es sentina (rounded portion of a ship's hull) · de Bilgewasser (bilge water) · ar إِنْكِلِيَّة (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · he מִי שִׁפּוּלַיִם (bilge water) · io bilgo (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · mi paewai (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · de Bilge (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · scn minchiati (nonsense) · fi pilssi (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · he שִׁפּוּלַיִם (lowest inner part of a ship's hull) · it sciocchezze (nonsense)