Speakeasy (Noun)
Meaning
(during prohibition) an illegal barroom.
Classification
Nouns denoting man-made objects.
Examples
- The patrons knocked on the door with a special knock, a secret signal that only members knew, to gain entrance to the exclusive speakeasy hidden behind the storefront.
- A tip from a reliable source led the detective to the most notorious speakeasy in the city, hidden deep beneath the streets.
- Under the dimly lit signs and flapping canvas, a select crowd could always be found heading down into the local speakeasy for an evening of live music and moonshine.
- Legs Diamond owned and operated some of the swankiest speakeasies in town, defying authorities at every turn with his elaborate and secretive underworld.
- Flappers danced the Charleston in makeshift speakeasies, fueled by bootlegged gin and defiant against the temperance laws of the era.