BILLY
What does "BILLY" mean?
A metal pot or can with a lid and wire handle, used for boiling water over a campfire.
Meanings
- A tin or enamel cooking pot with a wire handle, used to boil water or brew tea over an open fire, especially in Australia and New Zealand. We boiled the billy and brewed tea by the river.
- A short, heavy club carried as a weapon, especially by police; a billy club. The officer's billy hung from his belt.
- A male goat. The billy butted the gate until it gave way. informal
Word origin
The campfire pot may derive from Scots 'billy-pot' or from Aboriginal 'billa' ('water'); the club sense and the goat sense both stem from the male name Billy, a pet form of William.
Remember it
BILLY: picture a 'billy' goat butting a 'billy' can of tea by the campfire - the same friendly name covers pot, club, and goat.
A little poem
Smoke curls, the billy sings-
a small tin moon of boiling tea
swung clear of the coals.
haiku
Wordplay
- The goat, the campfire pot, and the police club met up and realized they all answered to 'Billy' - a real case of mistaken identity.
What it teaches
One plain name can carry pot, club, and goat: words travel by company, not by logic.
Quick facts
What does BILLY mean?
A metal pot or can with a lid and wire handle, used for boiling water over a campfire.
Is BILLY a valid word?
Yes — BILLY is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is BILLY?
BILLY has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does BILLY come from?
The campfire pot may derive from Scots 'billy-pot' or from Aboriginal 'billa' ('water'); the club sense and the goat sense both stem from the male name Billy, a pet form of William.
What can BILLY teach us?
One plain name can carry pot, club, and goat: words travel by company, not by logic.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.