brummagem - adj., showy but inferior and worthless. n., a showy but inferior and worthless thing.
In that use from 1630s, though the word itself is older: a local variation of the name of Birmingham, England. The application to the above sense comes from counterfeit coins (specifically, groats) produced there. Stress on the first syllable, soft g.
---L.
In that use from 1630s, though the word itself is older: a local variation of the name of Birmingham, England. The application to the above sense comes from counterfeit coins (specifically, groats) produced there. Stress on the first syllable, soft g.
---L.