brothel

noun

broth·​el ˈbrä-thəl  ˈbrȯ- 

 also  -t͟həl

plural brothels

: a business establishment where sex workers are available for hire

For recreation, there were bars, after-hours joints, pool halls, strip joints, brothels, and transient motels.

—Darlene Nall

Elizaveta is happy to become the madam of a high-class brothel.

—Jonathan Fast

In the brutal red-light district of Chicago, at the dawn of the 20th century, most brothels emphasized "efficiency instead of fantasy."

—Ada Calhoun

Synonyms

• bagnio
• bawdy house
• bordello
• cathouse
• disorderly house
• sporting house
• stew
• whorehouse

Examples of brothel in a Sentence

the district is infamous for its brothels and drug dealers

Recent Examples on the Web

Eddy Diaz, 66, a Bolivian immigrant who runs a soccer supply store along a busy stretch of Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights, Queens, was relieved last year when the police shut down a brothel that had opened next to his storefront. —Andy Newman, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2025

As a result, the client can often have a false sense of security when visiting the brothel. —Zoey Lyttle, People.com, 24 Jan. 2025

Ten episodes later, the psychological drama based around the DiMeo crime family in New Jersey takes viewers inside a sprawling mansion that was made over into a brothel for episode 11. —Demetrius Simms, Robb Report, 22 Jan. 2025

And then the scene in the brothel with the piano, that was the first instance of being alone with László and having a more intimate moment with him. —Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 24 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, worthless fellow, prostitute, from brothen, past participle of brethen to waste away, go to ruin, from Old English brēothan to waste away; akin to Old English brēotan to break — more at brittle

First Known Use

1566, in the meaning defined above