baksheesh

noun
/bækˈʃiːʃ/

Etymology

From Turkish bahşiş, from Persian بخشیش (baxšiš, “present; an honorary or pecuniary gratuity; drink-money”) or بخشش (baxšeš), from بخشیدن (baxšidan, “to give, grant, bestow”).

  1. derived from bahşiş

Definitions

  1. In the Middle East or southwest Asia

    In the Middle East or southwest Asia: a bribe or tip.

    • What an honour to think that I am to be elevated to the throne, and to bring the seat in Parliament as backsheesh to the sultan!
    • […] the complex Oriental etiquette which under the name of “baksheesh” calls for lavish remuneration and bribes, rudely demanded but ever so graciously accepted by the natives in return for little or no services rendered.
  2. A minor wound that necessitates the evacuation of a soldier from the combat zone for…

    A minor wound that necessitates the evacuation of a soldier from the combat zone for medical treatment.

    • When we had made the boys as comfortable as possible and given them fags, of which our Padre seemed to have an inexhaustable^([sic]) supply, they were quite cheerful, and joked about “backsheesh” wounds.
    • Some prayed for what was known as a 'blighty' wound or a 'backsheesh' wound, a wound that would be bad enough to have them sent home but not so bad that it would cripple them.
  3. To bribe with a baksheesh.

The neighborhood

Vish — recursive loop

No curated loop yet for baksheesh. Loops are being traced one word at a time while the ingestion pipeline matures.

sense glosses and etymology drawn from English Wiktionary · source · CC-BY-SA