Origins of Common Words - Tycoon

About the history, origins, and definitions of the common word tycoon.

UNCOMMON STORIES BEHIND COMMON WORDS

Tycoon - An anglicized version of the word taikun, the title by which the shogun of Japan was described to foreigners in the 19th century. The shogun (for those not up on their Nipponese history) was a military usurper, of no kin to the emperor; hence the current connotation of one who acquires power rather than inherits it.