English

Noun

lagniappe ‎(plural lagniappes)

1. (Louisiana, Mississippi, Trinidad and Tobago, uncommon) An extra or unexpected gift or benefit, such as that given to a customer when they purchase something else.
   • 1973, Thomas Pynchon, Gravity's Rainbow:

     ‘Call it a little lagniappe, goodbuddy, that’s Duane Marvy’s way o’ doin’ thangs.’

   • 2011, Steven Johnstone, A History of Trust in Ancient Greece (ISBN 0226405095), page 23:

     The seller resorts to a common saying to justify his position, while the buyer had to counter this with some arch words of his own. How buyers and sellers negotiated over a lagniappe—an extra tidbit or bonus—reveals the precarious nature of trust in such relationships. Millett […] focuses on merchants extending credit, but offering a lagniappe could do the same thing, […] .

Synonyms

• pasella (South Africa), tilly (Ireland)

Translations

Anagrams

• appealing