Meanings
- BritishidiomaticobsoleteslangKing's Bench Prison, a former prison in the south of London.
Ned and Tom were soon outside of the King’s Bench, (or Abbot’s Priory, as it was called by the prisoners,) they had not walked far before they fell in with Little Kiam […]
1825, The Dialogists; or, the Circuit of Banco Regis, page 932 more examples
[…] after this lady’s retirement to enjoy the otium cum dignitate [leisure with dignity] in Abbot’s Priory, she was visited by a gentleman who had previously and subsequently rendered her the most unequivocal and disinterested assistance, by frequent pecuniary supplies.
1822, Benchiana; or, Sketches of Life and Character in St. George’s Fields […], page 18Upon inquiring after George Charteris, Esq. he finds that he has bolted from Palace-yard, and taken refuge in “Abbot’s Priory;” and, to comfort him, the person who has received the 200l. bill, informs him “that Charteris is a notorious swindler.”
1824, “An Accommodating Customer ‘Queered’”, in The Spirit of the Public Journals, for the Year M.DCCC.XXIII […], page 65
Origin
After Charles Abbott, Lord Chief Justice from 1818 to 1832.
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
Abbot's Priory. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Abbot's%20Priory
“Abbot's Priory.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Abbot's%20Priory. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Abbot's Priory,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Abbot's%20Priory.
Source: Abbot's Priory on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.