kip-shop
A dated British slang term for a brothel, drawing on 'kip' in its older sense of a cheap lodging house or bed.
Definitions
A dated British slang term for a brothel, drawing on 'kip' in its older sense of a cheap lodging house or bed. The term has largely fallen out of use, surviving mainly in historical accounts of Victorian and Edwardian low life. Its euphemistic framing -- presenting a brothel as merely a place to sleep -- was typical of the evasive slang of the era.
The street was lined with pawnshops and kip-shops, the neighborhood's seediness on full display.
Comments
Old-fashioned slang for a brothel, used in Britain from the 19th and early 20th centuries. 'Kip' had its own layered slang history — meaning a sleep, a cheap lodging house, or a bed — and a kip-shop was where you paid for more than just a roof over your head. The term is dated enough to be colourful without being offensive, showing up in historical crime fiction and period dramas.
The detective's informant said the stolen jewels had last been seen in a kip-shop down by the docks.
Comments
(slang, dated) A brothel.
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