brummagem
adjective
showy but inferior and worthless.
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brummagem
American
[bruhm-uh-juhm]
/ ˈbrʌm ə dʒəm /
adjective
noun
Brummagem
British
/ ˈbrʌmədʒəm /
noun
-
Often shortened to: Brum. an informal name for Birmingham
-
(sometimes not capital) something that is cheap and flashy, esp imitation jewellery
adjective
Etymology
Origin of brummagem
First recorded in 1675–85; local variant of Birmingham, England (compare Bromwichham, Bromecham (17th century), Middle English Burmingeham ); originally in allusion to counterfeit coins produced there in the 17th century
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The audience descended safely, opened their eyes, found themselves once more in the brummagem Astor ballroom.
From Time Magazine Archive
Climax of the whole brummagem business was the "Zoro Gardens."
From Time Magazine Archive
To the feeble hope, ordinarily, of some sort of brummagem Utopia of creature-comforts, characterized by equality of condition, uniformity of life and thought, pervasive state regulation and the obliteration of traditional morality.
From Time Magazine Archive
More than that, she has lived a life so rich in history that, by comparison, the attractive twentysomethings the Food Network so desperately wants to turn into stars seem like brummagem pretenders.
From Time Magazine Archive
That conscience may be imperfect, inept, unintelligent, brummagem.
From In Defense of Women by H. L. (Henry Louis) Mencken
An early work of his, "Brummagem," was performed in PNB's 1978 "Summer Inventions" workshop, but he soured on the company after PNB reneged on a promise to provide live music for the piece.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 24, 2012
There's Mr. Joseph Brummagem, now, fancy my having to kneel at his feet, and take his measure!
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 93. July 30, 1887 by
It was at the time of the Conquest the manor of Bermingeham, or, as the Midland English prefer to pronounce it, "Brummagem."
From England, Picturesque and Descriptive A Reminiscence of Foreign Travel by Joel Cook
A casual lapse into Brummagem, I take it.
From Punch, or the London Charivari, Vol. 158, June 23, 1920 by Various
The derelicts of fashion are the staple of small-talk; they are suggestive of all the little social smartness one hears, and of that very Brummagem morality which assumes to judge them.
From One Of Them by Charles James Lever
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
