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apache definition

apache (ə pas̸h, -päs̸h′; Fr ȧ pȧs̸h′)

noun pl. apaches apach′es (-iz; Fr ȧ pȧs̸h′)

a gangster or thug of Paris

Etymology: Fr, lit., Apache: first used of Parisian thieves (1902) by Victor Moris, Fr journalist

adjective

designating a dance, performed typically as an exhibition in cabarets, that represents an apache handling his girl in a brutal, masterful way
Apache definition

Apache (ə pac̸h′ē)

noun

  1. pl. Apaches Apach′es or Apache Apach′e a member of a group of North American Indian peoples of the SW U.S. and N Mexico
  2. any of several Athabaskan languages and dialects spoken by these peoples

Etymology: AmSp, prob. < Yavapai (a Yuman language) ʾəpá·ə, people

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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