lagniappe
pronunciation
How to pronounce lagniappe in British English:
UK [læn'jæp]
How to pronounce lagniappe in American English:
US [læn'jæp]
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- Noun:
- a small gift (especially one given by a merchant to a customer who makes a purchase)
Word Origin
- lagniappe (n.)
- "dividend, something extra," 1849, from New Orleans creole, of unknown origin though much speculated upon. Originally a bit of something given by New Orleans shopkeepers to customers. Said to be from American Spanish la ñapa "the gift." Klein says this is in turn from Quechua yapa "something added, gift."We picked up one excellent word -- a word worth travelling to New Orleans to get; a nice, limber, expressive, handy word -- 'lagniappe.' They pronounce it lanny-yap. It is Spanish -- so they said. [Mark Twain, "Life on the Mississippi"]
Example
- 1. The merchant is giving half a yard extra for lagniappe .
- 2. As lagniappe , we provide a digital camera for those who subscribe the newspaper for a year .