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nickelodeon

American  
[nik-uh-loh-dee-uhn] / ˌnɪk əˈloʊ di ən /

noun

  1. an early movie theater where a film or a variety show could be seen, usually for the admission price of a nickel.

  2. an early jukebox that was operated by inserting nickels.

nickelodeon British  
/ ˌnɪkəˈləʊdɪən /

noun

  1. an early form of jukebox

  2. (formerly) a cinema charging five cents for admission

  3. (formerly) a Pianola, esp one operated by inserting a five-cent piece

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of nickelodeon

An Americanism first recorded in 1885–90; nickel (in the sense of “coin”) + (mel)odeon

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.