lagniappe

American  

[lan-yap, lan-yap] / lænˈyæp, ˈlæn yæp /

Or lagnappe

noun

1. Chiefly Southern Louisiana and Southeast Texas. a small gift given with a purchase to a customer, by way of compliment or for good measure; bonus.

2. a gratuity or tip.

3. an unexpected or indirect benefit.

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lagniappe British  

/ lænˈjæp, ˈlænjæp /

noun

1. a small gift, esp one given to a customer who makes a purchase

2. something given or obtained as a gratuity or bonus

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Etymology

Origin of lagniappe

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50; from Louisiana French, from Latin American Spanish la ñapa, la yapa “the addition,” equivalent to la feminine definite article + ñapa, yapa from from Quechua, yapa “that which is added”

Explanation

Say you buy a dozen doughnuts and the baker throws an extra cruller in your box. You've just been given a lagniappe, or a small gift from a merchant to a customer. The word lagniappe tells a fascinating American story. Spanish speakers in the New World took a word from the indigenous Quechua language to make la ñapa, meaning "the gift." Then in New Orleans, where Spanish and French mixed freely, la ñapa got Frenchified into lagniappe. In Louisiana it's still used to refer to a bonus from a friendly merchant when you buy something. You could also call any nice little extra a lagniappe.

Example Sentences

There will undoubtedly be some who find nits to pick, but it’s hard to imagine any less-than-obsessed fans unhappy with this lagniappe, apart from its comparative brevity.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 24, 2026

The point of the encore, he muses, is to give fans that feeling of something memorable, a little lagniappe to heighten the experience.

From Washington Post • Nov. 15, 2022

In his essential book "Imbibe," David Wondrich calls the Sazerac — created in the Crescent City before the turn of the 20th century — "New Orleans' own liquid lagniappe."

From Salon • Feb. 13, 2021

The rest of the trip was lagniappe: fishing, playing games, hanging out around the camp.

From Washington Times • Nov. 7, 2020

I've had enough;' the other party says, 'But just this one time more—this is for lagniappe.'

From Life on the Mississippi, Part 9. by Twain, Mark