moola
English
Alternative forms
Etymology
Unknown. Suggested origins, none of which are accepted by mainstream lexicographers,[1] include:
- from Romani mol (“have value, be worth”)[2]
- from Irish moll óir (“heap of gold”)[3] However, this is unlikely because of the difference in pronunciation.
- from French moulin (“mill”)
- from Chinook Jargon moola (“mill”)[4]
- from Sanskrit मूल (mūla, “capital, principal”)
- coined by Chuck Green, a friend of Damon Runyon[5]
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /ˈmuː.lə/
- IPA(key): /ˈmuːˌlɑː/
- Rhymes: -uːlə
- Rhymes: -uːlə(r) (in non-rhotic accents)
Translations
informal: money
References
- Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd Ed.
- Henry Hitchings, The Secret Life of Words: How English Became English →ISBN, page 323
- Daniel Cassidy, The Secret Language of the Crossroads: How the Irish Invented Slang
- “Cayoosh”, in cayoosh.net, accessed 23 January 2019, archived from the original on 5 August 2011
- Attributed to Mario Pei by William Safire, 6/8/2003 "On Language" column in the New York Times.
This article is issued from
Wiktionary.
The text is licensed under Creative
Commons - Attribution - Sharealike.
Additional terms may apply for the media files.