name
Bristol
BRIHS-tuhl
name
1
A city in southwest England, and by extension numerous smaller towns of the same name in the US, Canada, and elsewhere.
"They caught the early train from Bristol to London."
noun
1
Short for Bristol board, a smooth, heavyweight paper or card stock used for drawing, printing, and craft work.
"The illustrator preferred bristol for her finished pen-and-ink pieces."
2
(vulgar slang, British) A woman's breast.
"The joke relied entirely on rhyming slang for "Bristol.""
How to Use Bristol
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishMainly the well-known English city; also a term for a type of heavy drawing paper, and in British slang (via rhyming slang), a crude term for a woman's breast.
Common pairings
a sheet of bristol
Bristol board
Word Forms
Bristols plural, bristols plural
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Etymology
From Old English Bryċġstōw, literally "the place by the bridge," which evolved through Middle English Bristowe into the modern spelling.