philopena

noun

phil·​o·​pe·​na

variants or philippina

ˌfiləˈpēnə

or philippine

-ēn

plural -s

1

: a game in which a man and woman who have shared the twin kernels of a nut each try to claim a gift from the other as a forfeit at their next meeting by fulfilling certain conditions (as by being the first to exclaim "philopena")

called also fillipeen

2

a

: a nut with two kernels

b

: a gift given as a forfeit

Word History

Etymology

modification (influenced by Greek philos loving and Latin poena penalty) of German vielliebchen, literally, much loved; perhaps from the idea that the gift was a penalty of friendship or love

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