as in cane
a heavy rigid stick used as a weapon or for punishment
police officers carry a billy while patrolling on foot
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Recent Examples of billy
Soothe your anxiety over murmurs of Radiohead activity by plunging into electronic veteran Mark Pritchard’s new full-length with Thom Yorke; ramp that anxiety up again with a sinister sci-fi concept album from the unstoppable billy woods.
—
Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 19 Mar. 2025
Last year’s ever-eclectic bill featured Hessle Audio, Caroline Polachek, and billy woods; the inaugural New York edition is set to take place in May, with Oneohtrix Point Never, Nala Sinephro, Evilgiane, and Two Shell among the performers.
—Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 12 Mar. 2025
More importantly, Vance cast himself as an extraordinary exception to his fellow Appalachians, describing ’billies as encased in a toxic amber that kept them from improving their lot and left them embittered with a country that has moved on without them.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 16 July 2024
Hip-Hop In 2013, the indie-rap lifers billy woods and Elucid joined forces to become Armand Hammer, a clear-eyed, thrilling guerrilla duo with a penchant for cutting through nonsense.
—The New Yorker, 14 June 2024
Also on the Friday bill are: Jai Paul, 100 gecs, Jeff Rosenstock, Yaeji, Sudan Archives, Amen Dunes, billy woods & Kenny Segal, Tkay Maidza, Doss, ML Buch, Rosali, Angry Blackmen, and Black Duck.
—Pitchfork, 13 Mar. 2024
Courts have defined a billy as any kind of stick, bat or baton that is intended to be used as a weapon — even common items like a baseball bat or table leg could qualify if it is meant to hurt someone else.
—Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Feb. 2024
The rap duo—comprised of billy woods and Elucid—previously teamed up with the Alchemist for the 2021 collaboration Haram.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 27 Feb. 2024
The suit challenges only the prohibition on the billy and not the other weapons listed in the same statute.
—Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Feb. 2024
Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 19 Mar. 2025
Last year’s ever-eclectic bill featured Hessle Audio, Caroline Polachek, and billy woods; the inaugural New York edition is set to take place in May, with Oneohtrix Point Never, Nala Sinephro, Evilgiane, and Two Shell among the performers.
—Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 12 Mar. 2025
More importantly, Vance cast himself as an extraordinary exception to his fellow Appalachians, describing ’billies as encased in a toxic amber that kept them from improving their lot and left them embittered with a country that has moved on without them.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 16 July 2024
Hip-Hop In 2013, the indie-rap lifers billy woods and Elucid joined forces to become Armand Hammer, a clear-eyed, thrilling guerrilla duo with a penchant for cutting through nonsense.
—The New Yorker, 14 June 2024
Also on the Friday bill are: Jai Paul, 100 gecs, Jeff Rosenstock, Yaeji, Sudan Archives, Amen Dunes, billy woods & Kenny Segal, Tkay Maidza, Doss, ML Buch, Rosali, Angry Blackmen, and Black Duck.
—Pitchfork, 13 Mar. 2024
Courts have defined a billy as any kind of stick, bat or baton that is intended to be used as a weapon — even common items like a baseball bat or table leg could qualify if it is meant to hurt someone else.
—Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Feb. 2024
The rap duo—comprised of billy woods and Elucid—previously teamed up with the Alchemist for the 2021 collaboration Haram.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 27 Feb. 2024
The suit challenges only the prohibition on the billy and not the other weapons listed in the same statute.
—Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Feb. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Billy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/billy. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.
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