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panjandrum

[ pan-jan-druhm ]
/ pænˈdʒæn drəm /
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noun

a self-important or pretentious official.

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Origin of panjandrum

1745–55; pseudo-Latin word (based on pan-) coined by Samuel Foote (1720–77), English dramatist and actor

Words nearby panjandrum

panini, paniolo, Pan-Islamism, panivorous, Panjabi, panjandrum, Panjim, pan juice, Pankhurst, panko, P'an Ku
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021

Words related to panjandrum

administrator, civil servant, representative, minister, executive, bureaucrat, commissioner, agent, director, manager, officer, leader, secretary, premier, comptroller, exec, dignitary, top, magistrate, higher-up

Example sentences from the Web for panjandrum

British Dictionary definitions for panjandrum

panjandrum
/ (pænˈdʒændrəm) /

noun

a pompous self-important official or person of rank

Word Origin for panjandrum

C18: after a character, the Grand Panjandrum, in a nonsense work (1755) by Samuel Foote, English playwright and actor
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
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