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Pam

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The knave of clubs, short for Pamphile, the French word for the knave of clubs.

“Dr. Johnson’s derivation of Pam from palm, because ‘Pamʹ triumphs over other cards, is extremely comic. Of course, Pam is short for Pamphile, the French name for the knave of clubs.”—Notes and Queries (W. W. Skeat, 1 May, 1836), p. 358.

 

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Entry taken from Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, edited by the Rev. E. Cobham Brewer, LL.D. and revised in 1895.

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Palm
Palm Off (To)
Palm Oil
Palm Sunday
Palm Tree
Palmer
Palmerin of England
Palmy Days
Palsy
Paludamentum
Pam
Pamela
Pampas
Pamper
Pamphlet
Pamphyle
Pan
Panacea
Panama
Pancake
Pancaste