11/10/2023 0 Comments What does it mean to pawn something![]() A person might also palm something other than a playing card and pass it on inconspicuously. 2010 'Palm' as a Verbĭuring the 17th century, the verb palm begins being read and heard ( palmistry-a word for "palm reading"-traces to the 15th century) especially in reference to cheats in card games and tricks in which a person "palms" ("conceals") a card in the palm of the hand. ![]() Mark Konkol, The Chicago Sun-Times, 26 Dec. 2013Ī girl Parnell was chatting with abruptly excused herself … and pawned him off on her friend Lina, a pretty Columbian girl whom Parnell eventually married. Hapless individuals and business owners can find themselves stuck with useless fakes pawned off as the real thing for which they paid tens of thousands of dollars. Its implication of deception also increased: "The guy tried to pawn off the cubic zirconia ring as a diamond," "She pawned off the counterfeit bills at the store." The collocation pawn off is the more frequently used nowadays and can mean either "to sell (something) for more than it is worth by being dishonest" or "to get someone to accept or do (something)." (The chess pawn is of different origin it derives from Latin pedo, meaning "foot soldier.") Pawn's currency as a verb was coined in the 16th century in senses referring to giving or depositing something as a pledge or security (especially in exchange for money), as in "She had to pawn her diamond ring to pay rent."ĭuring the mid-1700s, pawn began its partnership with the adverbs off and upon and, in turn, increased its value in the English language as part of a verbal phrase denoting acts of getting rid of or passing off. ![]() The word is from the Middle French dialectal pan, of the same meaning. 'Pawn' as a VerbĮnglish speakers began exchanging pawn as a noun for "pledge" or "security" in the 15th century.
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