billy English · revision 5962
16 Oct 2026, 04:19 by bogdan “en10k b0228: reward … precious” current version
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+ ==Pronunciation==
+ * IPA: /ˈbɪl.i/^(Roach et al. 2011)
+
+ {{homograph|1|club; male goat}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|formation=eponym|attested=1795}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ The club is probably from Billy, a pet form of the name [[William]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)^(Collins 2023) which, like [[jack]], [[jimmy]] and [[jenny]], was given to various implements and machines from 1795;^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) Barnhart notes billy as a common appellation from about 1500.^(Barnhart 1988) Etymonline also compares French bille “a short, stout stick” (see [[billet]]).^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ A slubbing machine, used in preparing wool: 1795 in MWU and the late 18th century in the SOED;^(MWU 2024)^(SOED 2002) the OED also has a highwayman's club or bludgeon from 1795.^(OED 1989)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ In American burglars' slang a billy was a crowbar in 1848,^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) and a policeman's club, or billy club, from 1856.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline) The billy goat, a male goat, is from 1849 in the OED and the mid-19th century in the SOED.^(OED 1989)^(SOED 2002)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1795 – a slubbing machine; a bludgeon.^(MWU 2024)^(OED 1989)
+ * 1848 – a crowbar, in burglars' slang.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)
+ * 1849 – billy goat.^(OED 1989)
+ * 1856 – a policeman's club.^(Barnhart 1988)^(Etymonline)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # ''(chiefly US)'' A wooden [[club]], especially a police officer's [[truncheon]]; a billy club.^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+ # A male [[goat]]; a billy goat.^(SOED 2002)^(MWU 2024)
+
+ {{homograph|2|camp kettle}}
+
+ {{infobox|confidence=uncertain|attested=1839}}
+
+ ==Etymology==
+ The Australian camp kettle is of uncertain origin.^(SOED 2002) Collins and the ANDC take it from the Scots billypot, a cooking utensil, and the ANDC rejects links with [[billabong]] and with tins of bouilli beef;^(Collins 2023)^(ANDC) MWU takes it as probably a back-formation from billycan,^(MWU 2024) the NODE and SOED suggest an Aboriginal word billa “water”,^(NODE 1998)^(SOED 2002) and Morris derived it from the name Billy.^(Morris 1898)
+
+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==
+ A cylindrical tin can with a lid and wire handle, used for boiling water outdoors: 1839 in the OED and MWU, 1849 in the ANDC.^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024)^(ANDC)
+
+ ==Semantic evolution==
+ According to Morris, about 1850 the billy replaced the bushman's quart pot, because of its handle and lid.^(Morris 1898) ''To boil the billy'' is to make tea, and billy tea is tea made in one.^(Collins 2023)^(SOED 2002)
+
+ ==Timeline==
+ * 1839 – a camp kettle.^(OED 1989)^(MWU 2024)
+ * c. 1850 – replaces the quart pot.^(Morris 1898)
+
+ ==Modern meaning==
+ ===Noun===
+ # ''(chiefly Australia and New Zealand)'' A metal can with a lid and handle, used for boiling water or cooking over a campfire; a [[billycan]].^(AHD)^(Collins 2023)
+
+ ==Related words==
+ * [[billycan]]
+ * [[billy goat]]
+ * [[billy club]]
+ * [[William]]
+
+ ==Usage notes==
+ In Scots and northern English, billy also meant a comrade or companion, from about 1505, or a brother; the origin of this word is unknown.^(OED 1989)^(SOED 2002)^(Wright 1898)
+
+ ==References==
+ {{reflist}}