Barmecide: Meaning and Definition of

Bar•me•cide

Pronunciation: (bär'mu-sīd"), [key]
— n.
  1. a member of a noble Persian family of Baghdad who, according to a tale in The Arabian Nights' Entertainments, gave a beggar a pretended feast with empty dishes.
—adj.
  1. Barmecidal.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.