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What archaic word meaning "conceited show-off" once denoted a jester's cap?



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Answer: coxcomb

An ostentatiously conceited man is a coxcomb. The word, which originally denoted a jester's cap, was coined from the phrase cokkes comb because jesters' caps resembled the comb of a cock – i.e., the fleshy crest on the bird's head.

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