Built like a brick shithouse is an English idiom or expression used to describe a man or a woman. When used to describe a man, it means that the man is very muscular or solidly built. When used to describe a woman, it means the woman has a very shapely and attractive figure. It is most often applied to women in North America, e.g. “His ex-girlfriend had a terrible personality, but she was built like a brick shithouse.” See further explanation below, including the full meaning and usage, idiom origin, and further cultural discussion.
What is a Shithouse?
A shithouse is a vulgar name for an outhouse, a building used to cover an outdoor latrine or toilet, something rarely seen today due to the widespread availability of indoor plumbing and modern toilets. Most outhouses were ramshackle buildings or mere sheds, built poorly and of cheap or scrap materials. Therefore, a “shithouse” built out of brick would be one that was exceptionally well-built, thus the simile in the idiom “built like a brick shithouse.”
Meaning of Idiom ‘Built Like a Brick Shithouse’
To be built like a brick shithouse, said of a man, means to be very solidly built and muscular. When a woman is said to be built like a brick shithouse, it means she has a very shapely figure.
See the related idiom ‘to be a 10.’
In North America, this slang expression was almost exclusively applied to women and refers to a woman with an attractive, shapely figure. This usage confuses many who cannot imagine how it could be a compliment to refer to a woman as being similar to a “shithouse.” Like many idioms, it does not need to make literal sense to those who use it, but the origin below explains the figurative allusion.
Sentence Examples
“Did you see that woman?” asked Denny. “Talk about built like a brick shithouse!”
“You know that girl I was trying to pick up last night? Turns out she has a boyfriend.
“The guy was built like a brick shithouse. He looked like he could break me in half.”
“You can’t miss me, pal. I’m blonde, about 5’7″. Built like a brick shithouse.” — Switch (1991)
“I bet you gotta fight ’em off.” “No, I’ve given up the fight.” “You? Come on. You’re built like a brick shithouse!” — Jacknife (1989)
“She’s wearing a grey hoody, jeans, and she’s built like a brick shithouse.” — Scott & Bailey: Episode #2.1 (2012)
“He’s a dainty little thing. His dad, Billy, he was… he was built like a bloody brick shithouse. He had shoulders on him like I’ve never seen.” — Call the Midwife: Episode #1.6 (2012)
Origin of Built Like a Brick Shithouse
A “shithouse,” or in Australia a dunny is an outhouse used for urinating and defecating. These buildings, used before indoor plumbing was common, covered one or more toilets which were usually nothing more than holes or “latrines” dug in the ground.
The buildings were usually built cheaply out of odd bits of wood and were meant to be easy to move once the hole was filled with waste. An outhouse built out of brick, therefore, would be one that was much more well-built than usual, hence the allusion in the idiom.
So, to be built like a brick shithouse is to be better built (in terms of physique or figure) than usual. The intention behind the expression changes based on whether it is used to describe a man or a woman.
Applied to Men or Women
When a man is “well-built” it usually means he is large and muscular. When a woman is well-built it means she is shapely and comely. In either case, despite the disgusting reference, the expression is meant as a compliment.
Many sources insist that the phrase was always applied to a man. However, in North America, it was used almost exclusively for women, while it was applied to men in the UK. In the American South, the expression was often embellished, e.g. “built like a brick shithouse with hot and cold running water.”
The expression is rarely heard today, probably because of social mores and its offensive vulgarity, but it originated as early as the 1930s and was quite common until the 1950s.
Brick House by the Commodores
The iconic Commodore’s song “Brick House,” was based on the idiom, with the vulgar part taken out.
She’s a Brick House Meaning
There is no such idiom as ‘built like a brickhouse’ or, as the song says ‘she’s a brick house.’ However, the allusion is the same and the song is about shapely, or “solidly built” women. She’s a brick house means the same as ‘she’s built like a brick shithouse.’ Read more about the history of the song.
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