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Added 9 October 2026

rum

/ɹʌm/ noun

Latin root: saccharum Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about rum at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Liquor distilled from fermented molasses.
A card game based on collecting sets and sequences; the winner is the first to meld all their cards.

adjective

Beyond or deviating from the usual or expected.
a curious hybrid accent

Origin

In common use since at least 1654, of uncertain origin. Theories include: * that it is a shortening of rumbullion or rumbustion, names for rum also attested in the Caribbean during the mid-17th century, * that it derives from rummer, from Dutch roemer, * that it is from a Romani word for "strong, potent" which is (perhaps) the source of ramboozle and rumfustian (however, these drinks were not originally made with rum), * that it derives from rum ("fine, good") or from the last syllable of Latin saccharum (given the harsh taste of earlier rum, this origin is now considered unlikely)

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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