From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishbiliousbil‧i‧ous /ˈbɪliəs/ adjective 1 MIfeeling as if you might vomit She felt a bilious attack coming on.2 very unpleasant bilious green walls3 BAD-TEMPERED literary bad-tempered —biliousness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
bilious• Her mouth was filled with bilious acids that her stomach had sent up in sympathy.• After all, it was only a bilious attack ... uncomfortable at the time, but it soon passed.• We are told it was a bilious attack which had forced Désirée to take to her bed instead of the boards.• One bilious attack would have been passed over as something that could happen to anyone; but two aroused suspicion.• On Monday the endless time to fill suddenly collapsed, for Mrs Dummett developed a violent bilious attack.• Lianas writhed towards the light from bilious decaying depths.• a bilious green color• That warlock was a bloated, horned hermaphrodite draped in bilious green skin.Origin bilious (1500-1600) French bilieux, from Latin biliosus, from bilis; → BILE 