baksheesh
/bækˈʃiːʃ/
"baksheesh" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“baksheesh” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 9
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - In the Middle East or southwest Asia: a bribe or tip.
Corpus desk
Index EN-baksheesh · baksheesh · English
baksheesh · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 9 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "B" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | baksheesh |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | /bækˈʃiːʃ/ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “baksheesh” in English
Rare enough to double-check
baksheesh is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /bækˈʃiːʃ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
baksheesh has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Etymologically, the entry records: 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”). The correct English form is baksheesh, spelled B-A-K-S-H-E-E-S-H.
Definition
- 1In the Middle East or southwest Asia: a bribe or tip.
- 2A minor wound that necessitates the evacuation of a soldier from the combat zone for medical treatment.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how baksheesh appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
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!
As we rode into Magdala not a soul was visible. But the ring of the horses' hoofs roused the stupid population, and they all came trooping out—old men and old women, boys and girls, the blind, the crazy, and the crippled, all in ragged, soiled and scanty raiment, and all abject beggars by nature, instinct and education. […] [O]ut of their infidel throats,…
Etymology
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”).
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.