Barmecide

[ bahr-muh-sahyd ]

noun
  1. a member of a noble Persian family of Baghdad who, according to a tale in The Arabian Nights' Entertainments, gave a beggar a pretended feast with empty dishes.

adjective

Origin of Barmecide

1
<Persian Barmekī family name, literally, offspring of Barmek, with -ide-id1 for Persian <Arabic

Words Nearby Barmecide

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use Barmecide in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for Barmecide

Barmecide

Barmecidal

/ (ˈbɑːmɪˌsaɪd) /


adjective
  1. lavish or plentiful in imagination only; illusory; sham: a Barmecide feast

Origin of Barmecide

1
C18: from the name of a prince in The Arabian Nights who served empty plates to beggars, alleging that they held sumptuous food

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012