Bagnio

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈbænɪɔ/

Definitions

1. A notorious establishment where patrons seek sexual services or immoral engagements is known for its discreet operations
2. An establishment where people engage in illicit sexual activities ; a place equipped for bathing or providing lodging with baths ; a type of jail or detention center
3. A venue associated with offering sexual services ; a facility providing bath services often with accommodation ; a holding place used to confine prisoners

Etymology: The most surprising turn in this word's life is that a plain place to wash became a byword for a brothel and a prison. It comes from Italian "bagno" (bath), which itself descends from Latin "balneum," meaning bath. Italian "bagno" also gave Italy its word for a bathhouse, and the Italian pattern is what English borrowed. The word's path into English ran through the Ottoman Empire. Europeans in Constantinople used "bagno" for the bathhouses there, and the word came to stand for a bathing establishment in English. The word is a doublet of "bain" (from French), "balaneion" (from Greek), and "banya" (from Russian), all tracing back to the same Latin source. The later senses developed from the lodging and bath-house function. Some of these establishments were also used for sexual services, and the term came to mean a brothel. The sense of a prison arose from the Italian and Mediterranean use of the word for confinement buildings, including the naval prisons and convict houses associated with Venice and Naples where captives were held.

Synonyms: brothel, whorehouse, house of ill repute, cat house, red-light district