wifebeater

See also: wife beater and wife-beater

English

A wifebeater (sleeveless shirt)

Alternative forms

Etymology

From wife + beater. The lager acquired this nickname because, being relatively strong, it was thought to lead to drunken disputes.

Pronunciation

  • (file)

Noun

wifebeater (countable and uncountable, plural wifebeaters)

  1. One who (usually as a repeated practice) beats his wife, or a husband prone to violence.
  2. (US, slang) A kind of sleeveless shirt, often but not exclusively worn as an undershirt.
  3. (uncountable, Britain, slang) Stella Artois, a brand of lager beer.
    • 2005, Conrad Williams, London Revenant
      And then we were walking back alleys, trudging through the drifts of chip papers, the bottles and empty cans of wifebeater []
    • 2011, Pete Brown, Three Sheets to the Wind
      But Stella shouldn't really be drunk in pints the same way our dads used to drink bitter or mild that was effectively half as strong. Drink Stella in goblets like people do in its native country and, hey presto! It's no longer 'wifebeater'.

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