Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

pinchbeck

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 1.75 in modern English

Syllables: pinch-beck
IPA

24

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

2

Syllables

8

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

An alloy of copper and zinc once used as imitation gold for cheap jewelry.

Uncountable

adj

Made of pinchbeck.

adj

Sham; spurious, artificial; being a cheap substitution; only superficially attractive.

name

A village and civil parish in South Holland district, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom (OS grid ref TF2425).

Countable; Uncountable

name

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"on the inside were suspended a variety of watches, pinchbeck, silver, and one or two of gold"
"Where, in these pinchbeck days, can we hope to find the old agricultural virtue in all its purity?"
"Vain Delight must have lost her freshness, and be older and more pinchbeck."
"The second point on which I wish to offer a remark is the existence (in the novel) of a person named Schomberg. That I believe him to be true goes without saying. I am not likely to offer pinchbeck wares to my public consciously."
"Coming at a time when Alexander was trying desperately to halt Napoleon's advance, the British response to his call for help appeared even more pinchbeck than it was."
"Anyway, at least I had created the pinchbeck crown in which Dai could place his jewel."

Etymology

Named after Christopher Pinchbeck, an 18th century London watchmaker who developed the alloy.

Usage

Inflected Forms

pinchbecks (plural) more pinchbeck (comparative) most pinchbeck (superlative)

Derived Forms

pinchbeck

Frequently Paired Words

Pinchback

Questions

What does pinchbeck mean?: An alloy of copper and zinc once used as imitation gold for cheap jewelry.
Where does pinchbeck come from?: Named after Christopher Pinchbeck, an 18th century London watchmaker who developed the alloy.

How to pronounce pinchbeck

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “pinchbeck”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling () so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “pinchbeck”.
Repeat and practice — Say “pinchbeck” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.