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spalpeen

[ spal-peen, spal-peen ]
/ spÊlˈpin, ˈspÊl pin /
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noun Irish English.
a lad or boy.
a rascal; scamp.
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Origin of spalpeen

1770–80; <Irish spailpín seasonal hired laborer, rude person, scamp, equivalent to spailp spell, bout, turn + -ín noun suffix

Words nearby spalpeen

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use spalpeen in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for spalpeen

spalpeen
/ (ˈspÊlpiːn) /

noun Irish
an itinerant seasonal labourer
a rascal or layabout

Word Origin for spalpeen

C18: from Irish Gaelic spailpĂ­n itinerant labourer
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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