afikomen

or a·fi·ko·man

[ ah-fee-koh-muhn ]

noun

, Judaism.

1. a piece of matzo broken off from the center one of the three matzoth set before the leader of a Seder: it is hidden by the leader and later searched for by the children, with the finder, usually the youngest, receiving a reward.

Word History and Origins

Origin of afikomen¹

1890–95; < Yiddish afikoymen < Hebrew aphīgōmān < Greek epikṓmion revel, noun use of neuter of epikṓmios of a revel, equivalent to epi- epi- + kôm ( os ) revel + -ios adj. suffix

Example Sentences

Afterward, Cooper found the afikomen (for $10) and let Elijah in for his glass of booze.

From The Daily Beast