lagniappe

noun

la·gniappe | \ ˈlan-ˌyap

, lan-ˈyap \

Definition of lagniappe

: a small gift given to a customer by a merchant at the time of a purchase broadly : something given or obtained gratuitously or by way of good measure The waiter added a cup of lobster bisque as a lagniappe to the meal.

Synonyms Mark Twain's Thoughts on Lagniappe More Example Sentences Learn More about lagniappe

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Mark Twain's Thoughts on Lagniappe

We picked up one excellent word, wrote Mark Twain in Life on the Mississippi (1883), "a word worth traveling to New Orleans to get; a nice limber, expressive, handy word-'lagniappe'.... It is Spanish-so they said." Twain encapsulates the history of "lagniappe" quite nicely. English speakers learned the word from French-speaking Louisianians, but they in turn had adapted it from the American Spanish word la ñapa. Twain went on to describe how New Orleanians completed shop transactions by saying "Give me something for lagniappe," to which the shopkeeper would respond with "a bit of liquorice-root, ... a cheap cigar or a spool of thread." It took a while for "lagniappe" to catch on throughout the country, but by the mid-20th century, New Yorkers and New Orleanians alike were familiar with this "excellent word."

Examples of lagniappe in a Sentence

the meal was served with a lagniappe of freshly made cornbread the hotel threw in some free shampoo as a lagniappe

Recent Examples on the Web Anything beyond the quarterfinals would be straight-up lagniappe. — Jim Derry | Staff Writer, NOLA.com, "Derry's Dimes: Playoff outlook bright for many St. Tammany teams," 25 Nov. 2020 The tradition of lagniappe in liquid form continues at Café Degas (four courses $44), which adds a glass of port. — Ian Mcnulty | Staff Writer, NOLA.com, "Reveillon holiday menus endure at New Orleans restaurants, from classic to modern," 25 Nov. 2020 Also included were two lemons and a large mandarin, a lagniappe of citrus in an otherwise greens-heavy crate. — Los Angeles Times, "How to cook through that restaurant’s produce box you bought," 13 Apr. 2020 Murray is five foot ten and one eighth of an inch, that extra point being lagniappe thrown in by the football gods. — Rich Cohen, Harper's magazine, "The Wood Chipper," 19 Aug. 2019 That the club's salary cap situation also improved was lagniappe. — Jeff Duncan, NOLA.com, "This Pelicans' season has been one of redemption for Dell Demps," 8 May 2018 Jones agreed that the bonds forged through service are a lagniappe of JAS membership. — Carol Wolfram, NOLA.com, "Junior Auxiliary of Slidell reunites for golden anniversary," 2 May 2018 Any success in the playoffs looking back should have been lagniappe. — Larry Holder, NOLA.com, "From Hakim's drop to Beast Mode's run, a wild history for Saints in wild-card weekend," 7 Jan. 2018 Simply making it to the NFC Divisional round felt like lagniappe after the Saints toppled the defending Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams in the wild-card round. — Larry Holder, NOLA.com, "Saints NFC Divisional playoff history: From 'Bring the Wood' to Vernon Davis and Alex Smith," 14 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'lagniappe.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.