bilboes

English

Etymology

Unknown. Purported to have been invented in Bilbao, Spain, yet the device's name predates the Spanish Armada that supposedly imported it.

Pronunciation
  • IPA(key): /ˈbɪlbəʊz/

Noun

bilboes pl (plural only)

  1. An iron bar fitting around the ankles of prisoners, and having sliding shackles.
    • 2001, Glen David Gold, Carter Beats The Devil:
      The bilboes looked like handcuffs that went around the ankles. The prisoner lay flat on his back, in the dirt, his feet suspended in the air by a length of iron bar to which the bilboes were fastened.

Anagrams
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