baksheesh

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baksheesh

/bækˈʃiːʃ/

Rhymes with -iːʃ

Where it comes from

From Turkish bahşiş, from Persian بخشیش (baxšiš, “present; an honorary or pecuniary gratuity; drink-money”) or بخشش (baxšeš), from بخشیدن (baxšidan, “to give, grant, bestow”).

noun baksheeshes · bachshish · bakshee · backsheesh · backshish · backsishe

uncountable, usually In the Middle East or southwest Asia: a bribe or tip. What an honour to think that I am to be elevated to the throne, and to bring the seat in Parliament as backsheesh to the sultan!
Similar: grease payment, lubrication payment
slang, uncountable, usually A minor wound that necessitates the evacuation of a soldier from the combat zone for medical treatment. When we had made the boys as comfortable as possible and given them fags, of which our Padre seemed to have an inexhaustable^([sic]) supply, they were quite cheerful, and joked about “backsheesh” wounds.
Similar: buckshee, Blighty one

verb baksheeshes · baksheeshing · baksheeshed · bachshish · bakshee

ambitransitive To bribe with a baksheesh.

Translations

Every language

noun bribe or tip

Español	baksheesh
हिन्दी	बख़्शीश baxśīś
Kiswahili	bakshishi
Português	baksheesh
Français	bakchich
Deutsch	Bakschisch
Ελληνικά	μπαξίσι baxísi, λάδωμα ládoma, φιλοδώρημα filodórima
Română	bacșiș
Русский	бакши́ш bakšíš, чаевы́е čajevýje, взя́тка vzjátka
العربية	بَقْشِيش baqšīš
עברית	בַּקְשִׁישׁ baqšíš

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MLA

"baksheesh." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/baksheesh. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

baksheesh. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/baksheesh

Chicago

"baksheesh." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/baksheesh.

BibTeX

@misc{baksheesh_2026,
  title = {baksheesh},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/baksheesh},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}