green about the gills

Alternative forms

• green around the gills, green at the gills, green in the gills

Adjective

green about the gills

1. (idiomatic) Ill or unwell, especially as indicated by one's appearance.
   • 1899, Arthur Conan Doyle, chapter 6, in A Duet:

     "You're looking rather green about the gills, old chap."

     "I feel a little chippy to-day."

     "That's the worst of these cheap champagnes."

   • 2007 Feb. 25, Christopher Elliott, "Strategies to Make More Passengers Maiden Voyagers," New York Times (retrieved 15 Sept 2013):

     Although he boarded his ship with wristbands and pills intended to ward off any possible queasiness, he did not turn green about the gills.