wampum

[ wom-puhm, wawm- ]
See synonyms for wampum on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. Also called peag, seawan, sewan . cylindrical beads made from shells, pierced and strung, used by North American Indians as a medium of exchange, for ornaments, and for ceremonial and sometimes spiritual purposes, especially such beads when white but also including the more valuable black or dark-purple varieties.

  2. Informal: Often Offensive. money.

Origin of wampum

1
First recorded in 1630–40; short for wampumpeag

usage note For wampum

See firewater.

Words Nearby wampum

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

How to use wampum in a sentence

  • As I embarked to return, he put the white wampum around my neck—a pledge of truth, my sweetheart, my Algonquin.

    The Indian in his Wigwam | Henry R. Schoolcraft

British Dictionary definitions for wampum

wampum

/ (ˈwɒmpəm) /


noun
  1. (formerly) money used by North American Indians, made of cylindrical shells strung or woven together, esp white shells rather than the more valuable black or purple ones

  2. US and Canadian informal money or wealth

Origin of wampum

1
C17: short for wampumpeag, from Narraganset wampompeag, from wampan light + api string + -ag plural suffix
  • Also called: peag, peage

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

Cultural definitions for wampum

wampum

[ (wahm-puhm) ]


Beads made from polished shells that some Native Americans once used as money and jewelry.

The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.