brummagem

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The Word of the Day for February 11 is:

brummagem   \BRUM-ih-jum\   adjective
     : not genuine : spurious; also : cheaply showy : tawdry

Example sentence:
     The jewelry box in Penelope's grandmother's closet was 
filled with brummagem costume jewelry.

Did you know? 
     "Brummagem" first appeared in the 17th century as an 
alteration of "Birmingham," the name of a city in England. At 
that time Birmingham was notorious for the counterfeit coins 
made there, and the word "brummagem" quickly became associated 
with things forged or inauthentic. By the 19th century, 
Birmingham had become a chief manufacturer of cheap trinkets 
and gilt jewelry, and again the word "brummagem" followed 
suit -- it came to describe that which is showy on the outside 
but essentially of low quality. Perhaps the term was something 
of an annoyance to the people of Birmingham way back when, but 
nowadays "brummagem" is usually used without any conscious 
reference to the British city.