pimp
pimp Lexical Profile
pimp Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A person who solicits clients for a prostitute and takes a percentage of their earnings in return for protection or management.
"The police investigation targeted the network of pimps operating in the downtown district."
• verb
To act as a procurer for prostitutes.
"He was arrested and charged with attempting to pimp in the local entertainment district."
To customize, decorate, or make something ostentatiously impressive or flashy (slang).
"He spent the entire summer working at the garage so he could pimp his old sedan with chrome rims and a new sound system."
Word Nuance & Usage
While its primary sense refers to an illegal procurer of prostitutes, in contemporary informal slang the verb is frequently used playfully to mean customizing or flamboyantly upgrading an object, such as a vehicle.
• Rhymes for pimp
Word Origin & Etymology
First recorded in the early 17th century, probably derived from the Middle French verb 'pimper', meaning to dress up eleganly or allure, or 'pimpant', meaning alluring or stylish.