Word.ws English Dictionary

Abbot's Priory

Abbot's Priory proper noun: king's Bench Prison, a former prison in the south of London.

Proper noun

Abbot's Priory

  1. (British, idiomatic, obsolete, slang) King's Bench Prison, a former prison in the south of London.
    • […] 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 18
    • Upon 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 of Abbot's Priory

After Charles Abbott, Lord Chief Justice from 1818 to 1832.

Questions about Abbot's Priory

What does Abbot's Priory mean?
Abbot's Priory means king's Bench Prison, a former prison in the south of London.
What part of speech is Abbot's Priory?
Abbot's Priory is a proper noun.

Words near Abbot's Priory in the dictionary

  1. abbot on the cross
  2. abbot primate
  3. abbot primates
  4. Abbot Village
  5. Abbot's Meads
  6. Abbot's Priory
  7. Abbot's Salford
  8. abbot-bishop
  9. abbot-bishops
  10. abbotcies
  11. abbotcy

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: Abbot's Priory (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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