Black Maria
Appearance
English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Unknown, though such vans were traditionally painted black. First attested in the 1830s.
Pronunciation
[edit]- IPA(key): /blæk məˈɹaɪə/
Audio (General Australian): (file) - Rhymes: -aɪə
Noun
[edit]Black Maria (plural Black Marias)
- (slang) A police van for transporting prisoners.
- 1867, Tony Pastor, “The Upper and Lower Ten Thousand”, in Tony Pastor’s Book of Six Hundred Comic Songs and Speeches:
- The Upper Ten Thousand have plenty of cash—
At the Central Park, on the “Drive,” cut a dash;
They have their light wagons, fast horses beside;
In the free “Black Maria” the Lower Ten ride.
Synonyms
[edit]Related terms
[edit]Translations
[edit]a police van for transporting prisoners
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See also
[edit]References
[edit]- Michael Quinion (2004) “Black Maria”, in Ballyhoo, Buckaroo, and Spuds: Ingenious Tales of Words and Their Origins, Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Books in association with Penguin Books, →ISBN.
Categories:
- English terms with unknown etymologies
- English terms with IPA pronunciation
- English terms with audio pronunciation
- Rhymes:English/aɪə
- Rhymes:English/aɪə/4 syllables
- English lemmas
- English nouns
- English countable nouns
- English multiword terms
- English slang
- English terms with quotations
- English eponyms
- en:Law enforcement