A gratuity, tip, or reward; an alternative spelling or variant of cumshaw, common in sailor and trade pidgin English.
From Chinese Pidgin English 'cumshaw' or 'chop-chop,' derived from Chinese 'jing shui' (meaning gift or gratitude money); entered English through 19th-century trade with China.
Cumsha preserves a piece of colonial-era trade language—it shows how English speakers simplified and adapted Chinese words to create a whole special vocabulary for commerce and seafaring.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.