ponce

Uncertain, but probably an aphetic form of French alphonse (“kept man”), from the male given name Alphonse. Also sometimes connected to pounce or French pensionnaire (“pensioner, person living without working”).

• IPA^(key): /pɒns/

• Audio (AU)

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• Rhymes: -ɒns

ponce (plural ponces)

1. (Britain, derogatory slang) A man living off another's earnings, especially a woman's.
   1. Synonym of kept man. [1859]
   2. Synonym of pimp, especially one hired by a prostitute as a tout, bodyguard, and driver. [1872]
2. (Britain, Australia, Ireland, derogatory slang) Synonym of poof: an effeminate male homosexual; any similarly effeminate man. [1932]

ponce (third-person singular simple present ponces, present participle poncing, simple past and past participle ponced)

1. (Britain, slang) To act as a pimp.
2. (Britain, slang) Hence, to try to get rid of or proactively sell something.
3. (Britain, derogatory) To behave in a posh or effeminate manner.
   • 1992, Michael Swanwick, Stations of the Tide:

     The interior was warm and dim, cluttered with flying brass pigs and poncing felt mannequins.

4. (Britain, slang) To borrow (something) from somebody without returning it.

• ponce wheel
• poncey

• Copen, NOPEC

From Latin pūmex (via a Late Latin pōmex).

• IPA^(key): /pɔ̃s/

ponce f (plural ponces)

1. pumice
2. (Quebec) hot alcoholic beverage made with gin or rum

• poncer
• poncif

• “ponce” in le Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

• poncio

Borrowed from English punch, from Hindi पाँच (pāñć, “five”), because of the drink's original five ingredients (spirits, water, lemon juice, sugar, and spice), from Sanskrit पञ्चन् (páñcan).

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɔn.t͡ʃe/, [ˈpɔn̺ʲt͡ʃe]
• Stress: pònce
• Hyphenation: pon‧ce

ponce m (uncountable)

1. punch (beverage)

• ponce in Treccani.it – Vocabolario Treccani on line, Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana