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• ponce
  ponce

  noun

  a pimp.
• Ponce
  Ponce

  noun

  a seaport in S Puerto Rico.

ponce

¹ American  

[pons] / pɒns /

noun

British Slang.

• ponces
  plural

1. a pimp.

2. a campily effeminate male.

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Ponce ² American  

[pawn-se] / ˈpɔn sɛ /

noun

1. a seaport in S Puerto Rico.

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ponce ¹ British  

/ pɒns /

noun

1. a man given to ostentatious or effeminate display in manners, speech, dress, etc

2. another word for pimp 1

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verb

1. (intr; often foll by around or about) to act like a ponce

Ponce ² British  

/ ˈpɔnθe /

noun

1. a port in S Puerto Rico, on the Caribbean: the second largest town on the island; settled in the 16th century. Pop: 185 930 (2003 est)

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• ponces
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of ponce

First recorded in 1870–75; of obscure origin

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ponce Ponce ponces

Ms. Conner added, “We also have ponce, my favorite. It’s the pig stomach. It tastes like a big, giant sausage.”

From New York Times ● Feb. 20, 2020

It’s also – with three female leads running the country as the men ponce about in big wigs – a prime example of what movies might look like post #MeToo.

From The Guardian ● Dec. 18, 2018

If there was someone I liked, I’d worm my way under his nose, then, well, ponce about until he noticed me: peacocking.

From The Guardian ● Nov. 4, 2017

"I think it makes you look a bit of a ponce, to be honest, though who am I to tell Mr Tevez what to wear?"

From The Guardian ● Dec. 5, 2010

I know a good many places where Amen should be scratched out, rubbed over with ponce made of Momus’s little finger bones, and in its place Twang-dillo-dee written.

From Letters of John Keats to His Family and Friends by John Keats

"We're continuing to work in the same way," coordinator Luciana Ponce told AFP, adding that "residents are also experiencing it with great anticipation."

From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026

If the intersection were to be made safer, the account would have to pivot, Ponce said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

When the slumming Ponce, who lives somewhere else and who picked up a semblance of education, tries to explain that all earthly agriculture is reliant on bees, he gets blowback.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

Rosa Thurnher, owner of El Ponce restaurant and a board member of the Independent Restaurant Coalition, said businesses have noticed changes in tipping behaviour since World Cup fans arrived.

From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026

“So, let’s keep it simple. Mr. Mercaydo, were you at Ponce de Leon Restaurant at any time yesterday?”

From "Bodega Dreams" by Ernesto Quinonez

A vote for Bregetables Speaking of gullible middle-class foodie ponces: on Sunday I needed some special mushrooms.

From The Guardian ● Feb. 23, 2016

I'm 72, but I'm painting, sculpting, making little boxes that the art ponces call cabinets of curiosities, making photographs.

From The Guardian ● Aug. 25, 2010

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