Magdalene laundry

English

Etymology

Named after Mary Magdalene, traditionally associated with prostitution and patron saint of penitent sinners.

Noun

Magdalene laundry (plural Magdalene laundries)

  1. (historical, chiefly Ireland) A religious facility in which prostitutes and unmarried mothers were kept, usually against their will, as a source of forced labour to launder clothes.

Synonyms

Hypernyms

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