Meanings
plural bridewells
- Irelandcapitalizeddatedsometimesrare elsewhereA small prison, or a police station that has cells.
Others in the Bridewell heard him screaming. Even prison doctors could see. His injuries were not self-inflicted. Those who tipped the scales did not agree.
1983, “The Wicklow Boy”, in The Time Has Come, performed by Christy Moore, produced by Dónal Lunny1 more example
Two Fermanagh girls who never laughed were certain that he must have served time in a bridewell, so cold was his expression and so calloused his small hands.
2002, Joseph O'Conner, Star of the Sea, Vintage, published 2003, page xix
Synonyms & antonyms
Origin
From Bridewell (named after a well dedicated to St Bride), an area of London that once had a "house of correction".
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
bridewell. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bridewell
“bridewell.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bridewell. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bridewell,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bridewell.
Source: bridewell on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.