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Definition of philopena - 1 dictionary result

phil⋅o⋅pe⋅na

  [fil-uh-pee-nuh]
Use philopena in a Sentence
–noun
1. a custom, presumably of German origin, in which two persons share the kernels of a nut and determine that one shall receive a forfeit from the other at a later time upon the saying of a certain word or the performance of a certain action.
2. the thing shared.
3. the forfeit paid.
Also, fillipeen.

Origin:
1830–40, Americanism; earlier philippina < D philippine < G Vielliebchen, dim. of viellieb very dear; in earlier form viellieb was taken as proper name Philippe Philip and -chen was made into fem. suffix -ina, giving a woman's name; in later form the word was Anglicized along pseudo-classical lines (cf. philo-, penal )
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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