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Coffee money
//ˈkɔfi ˌmʌni// noun, slang
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Loose change. slang, uncountable
- 2 A small amount of money given as a bribe or gratuity. Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, idiomatic, uncountable
"Singapore is free of corruption as any place on earth. (Even small-scale bribery attempts lead to immediate arrest.) Ironically, this has surfaced as a disadvantage for Singaporeans conducting business in other countries - where contacts aren’t always considered binding, bureaucratic inefficiency can make a mockery of time tables, infrastructures can be unreliable, “quality” may be seen as a relative term and “tea money” (known as “coffee money” during Singapore’s British colonial days) is a prerequisite to getting anything done."
Etymology
A euphemism that refers to the amount of money typically enough to buy a cup of coffee. The bribe or gratuity fee sense is a calque of Malay duit kopi.
See also for "coffee money"
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Unscramble this word: coffeemoney