Definition: noun 1 : a provincial governor of the Mogul empire in India 2 : a person of great wealth or prominence

Etymology: Hindi navāb & Urdu nawāb, from Arabic nuwwāb, plural of nā’ib governor

Quotation:

In the United States today, we have more than our share of nattering nabobs of negativism. They have formed their own 4-H club—the hopeless, hysterical hypochondriacs of history.

- famous quote by former vice-president Spiro Agnew credited to his speech writer William Safire

I don’t usually include etymology for words, but this one was just too juicy to pass up. Upon first hearing the word “nabob” I picture a tiny bird hopping along the ground nibbling at bread crumbs. Apparently the Moguls had different ideas.