-ville, suffix colloq.
(vɪl)
[ad. F. ville town.]
A terminal element appended to ns. (which freq. have a pl. suff.) or adjs. to denote: (a) a fictitious place; (b) a particular quality suggested by the word to which it is appended.
In U.S. usage orig. as ― from ―ville.
| 1567 Harman Caveat (ed. 2) sig. G 3, Rome vyle London. 1843 G. Cruikshank Comic Almanack sig. F 4v, Tripe & Trotter Depôt..Meatville. 1891 N.Y. Sporting Times 11 July 3/4 Then he was as frisky as a young colt and a slugger from Sluggersville. 1906 F. H. Burnett Shuttle (1907) xxxviii. 384 That girl is a winner from Winnersville. I take off my hat to her. 1932 Magnet 17 Sept. 13/3 I'm telling you you're the biggest bonehead from Boneheadville. 1939 [see route march s.v. route n. 4]. 1956, etc. [see Squaresville]. 1959, 1961 [see Cubesville s.v. cube n.1 1 c]. 1961 [see Squaresville]. 1962 P. Mortimer Pumpkin Eater xiii. 118 Tiny bit boring, between you and me. Strict secrets of course. English Rose stuff. Deathville, as far as I'm concerned. 1964 [see relocate v. 2]. 1967 J. Aitkin Young Meteors i. 35 University? Man, that's just dragsville. 1972 Publishers' Weekly 2 Oct. 56/1 There are some who will simply not get the fun of it out there in mass-marketville. 1979 National Times (Austral.) 13 Oct. 5/2 But there is a mite more to leadership, even here in Mediaville [sc. Washington], than looking pretty and carrying a resonant baritone voice. |