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pelf

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pelf

[pelf]
–noun
money or wealth, esp. when regarded with contempt or acquired by reprehensible means.

Origin:
1300–50; ME < OF pelfre booty
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
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pelf   (pělf)   
n.  Wealth or riches, especially when dishonestly acquired.

[Middle English, from Medieval Latin pelfra, pelfa, probably from Old French pelfre.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

pelf 
c.1375, from Anglo-Fr. pelf, from O.Fr. pelfre "booty, spoils" (11c.), of unknown origin, related to pilfer (q.v.). Meaning "money, riches," with a pejorative overtone first recorded c.1500.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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