pinochle
[ pee-nuhk-uh l, -nok- ]
/ ˈpi nʌk əl, -nɒk- /
noun
a popular card game played by two, three, or four persons, with a 48-card deck.
a meld of the queen of spades and the jack of diamonds in this game.
Nearby words
- pinocchio,
- pinocchio, the adventures of,
- pinochet,
- pinochet ugarte,
- pinochet ugarte, augusto,
- pinocyte,
- pinocytose,
- pinocytosis,
- pinole,
- pinon
Origin of pinochle
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for pinochle
pinochle
penuchle, penuckle or pinocle
/ (ˈpiːnʌkəl) /
noun
a card game for two to four players similar to bezique
the combination of queen of spades and jack of diamonds in this game
Word Origin for pinochle
C19: of unknown origin
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
pinochle
also pinocle, 1864, Peaknuckle, of uncertain origin, perhaps from Swiss dialect Binokel (German), binocle (French), from French binocle "pince-nez" (17c.), from Medieval Latin binoculus "binoculars" (see binocular). Taken as a synonym for bésigue "bezique," the card game, and wrongly identified with besicles "spectacles," probably because the game is played with a double deck. Pinochle was popularized in U.S. late 1800s by German immigrants.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper