British naval and military slang for doing the laundry — washing your clothes, whether by hand in a bucket or at a shore facility. Dhobying comes from the Hindi word 'dhobi,' a washerman or laundryman, and was carried back to Britain by sailors and soldiers who served in India during the colonial era. The term is still understood in military circles and among older British speakers, and a 'dhoby bucket' is naval slang for a washing bucket.
He spent Sunday afternoon dhobying his uniform in the sink because there was no chance of getting to the laundry before Monday inspection.
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(British, naval) The washing of clothes; laundry.
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Regional slang from around the English-speaking world — British, Australian, Irish, Caribbean, Nigerian, Filipino, AAVE, and the hyphenated-English dialects that make the internet sound local.
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