bilge

¹bilge

noun \ˈbilj\

Definition of BILGE

1

: the bulging part of a cask or barrel

2

a : the part of the underwater body of a ship between the flat of the bottom and the vertical topsides

b : the lowest point of a ship's inner hull

3

: stale or worthless remarks or ideas

Examples of BILGE

1. That magazine prints a lot of bilge about celebrities.
2. <tried to justify his bigoted tirade with a lot of stale and insincere bilge>

Origin of BILGE

probably modification of Middle French boulge, bouge leather bag, curved part — more at budget

First Known Use: 1513

Related to BILGE

Synonyms

applesauce [slang], balderdash, baloney (also boloney), beans, nonsense, blah (also blah-blah), blarney, blather, blatherskite, blither, bosh, bull [slang], bunk, bunkum (or buncombe), claptrap, codswallop [British], crapola [slang], crock, drivel, drool, fiddle, fiddle-faddle, fiddlesticks, flannel [British], flapdoodle, folderol (also falderal), folly, foolishness, fudge, garbage, guff, hogwash, hokeypokey, hokum, hoodoo, hooey, horsefeathers [slang], humbug, humbuggery, jazz, malarkey (also malarky), moonshine, muck, nerts [slang], nuts, piffle, poppycock, punk, rot, rubbish, senselessness, silliness, slush, stupidity, taradiddle (or tarradiddle), tommyrot, tosh, trash, trumpery, twaddle

Related Words

absurdity, asininity, fatuity, foolery, idiocy, imbecility, inaneness, inanity, insanity, kookiness, lunacy; absurdness, craziness, madness, senselessness, witlessness; hoity-toity, monkey business, monkeyshine(s), shenanigan(s), tomfoolery; gas, hot air, rigmarole (also rigamarole); double-talk, greek, hocus-pocus

Near Antonyms

levelheadedness, rationality, reasonability, reasonableness, sensibleness; common sense, horse sense, sense; discernment, judgment (or judgement), wisdom

²bilge

intransitive verb

bilged bilg·ing

Definition of BILGE

: to become damaged in the bilge

First Known Use of BILGE

1728

Other Nautical Terms

avast, aweigh, flotsam, jib, keel, lee, port, starboard, stay