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brothel

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English

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Pronunciation

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Etymology 1

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Short for brothel-house ("house of prostitution"), from brothel ("a wretch; scoundrel; lecher; harlot; prostitute") + house , influenced by bordel . For more on brothel ("a wretch"), see below.

Noun

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brothel (plural brothels )

  1. A house of prostitution.
    • 1893, Richard von Krafft-Ebing, "Congenital Homo-sexuality", in Charles Gilbert Chaddock, transl., Psychopathia Sexualis , The F. A. Davis Co., page 245:
      Thus, during the last four years, I have visited brothels about every ten days or two weeks. Only seldom does coitus fail; for I have learned my peculiarities, and in the choice of a prostitute know immediately whether she will excite me or have no effect.
    • 2003, Rob Baum, Female Absence: Women, Theatre, and Other Metaphors, Brussels: P.I.E.-Peter Lang, →ISBN, page 89:
      Only women already existing in the social margins became actresses.26 For example, celebrated tragedienne Elizabeth Barry was an orphan, Nell Gwynn a barmaid raised in a brothel, Moll Davis the illegitimate daughter of a Colonel. Other actresses were the wives and daughters of male actors, as for example Mary Saunderson (Mrs Betterton) and (in a later period) Mrses Kean, Kemble and Siddons.
Synonyms
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See also Thesaurus:brothel

Derived terms
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Descendants
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Translations
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house of prostitution

See also

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Etymology 2

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    From Middle English brothel , brodel , brodelle , brethel ("a wretch, a depraved man or woman") (compare also Middle English bretheling ("a wretch")), apparently from an unrecorded Old English *brēoþel ("degenerative, corruptive"), related to Old English ābrēoþan ("to unsettle, degrade, ruin, frustrate, degenerate, deteriorate, fall away"); Old English ābroþen ("degenerate, base, trifling"); both ultimately from Proto-Germanic *breuþaną ("to fall apart; crumble").

    The expected modern English form would be *broddle (see fiddle ); the failure of the change from /ðl/ to /dl/ may be because of the intervening schwa in the word's uninflected forms, influence from the verb, or most likely, a dialectal development (compare stathel besides staddle ).

    Noun

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    brothel (plural brothels )

    1. (The addition of quotations indicative of this usage is being sought:) (obsolete ) A wretch; a depraved or lewd person.

    Anagrams

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