village
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
Or THE VILLAGE, i.e., London. Birmingham is called "the hardware VILLAGE." Also a Cambridge term for a disreputable suburb of that town, viz., Barnwell, generally styled "the VILLAGE."
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Where it’s used:
Origin
British & Irish English
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “village” mean?
Or THE VILLAGE, i.e., London. Birmingham is called "the hardware VILLAGE." Also a Cambridge term for a disreputable suburb of that town, viz., Barnwell, generally styled "the VILLAGE."
Is “village” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.