currency

American  

[kur-uhn-see, kuhr-] / ˈkɜr ən si, ˈkʌr- /

noun

• currencies
  plural

1. something that is used as a medium of exchange; money.

2. general acceptance; prevalence; vogue.

3. a time or period during which something is widely accepted and circulated.

4. the fact or quality of being widely accepted and circulated from person to person.

5. circulation, as of coin.

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currency British  

/ ˈkʌrənsɪ /

noun

1. a metal or paper medium of exchange that is in current use in a particular country

2. general acceptance or circulation; prevalence

   the currency of ideas

3. the period of time during which something is valid, accepted, or in force

4. the act of being passed from person to person

5. (formerly) the local medium of exchange, esp in the colonies, as distinct from sterling

6. slang

   1. (formerly) the native-born Australians, as distinct from the British immigrants

   2. ( as modifier )

      a currency lad

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currency Cultural  

1. Any form of money in actual use as a medium of exchange.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• currencies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of currency

From the Medieval Latin word currentia, dating back to 1650–60. See current, -ency

Explanation

Currency is the paper and coin money that a country uses to conduct business. The United States uses a currency that's made up of dollars, quarters, nickels, dimes, and pennies. Just about every country has its own currency — the money its people use to pay for their groceries, clothes, and other goods. Paper currency in the United States is all green and can confuse people who use bills with different colors for different denominations. In addition to describing a country's monetary system, currency means something that is accepted or used. The slang word "daddy-o" was the currency in the 1950s, but people who say it today can expect to receive strange looks.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

currency currencies

Carry trades involve investors borrowing in a low-yielding currency to fund the purchase of a currency with higher yields.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Hamilton studied how Britain built a permanent bond market and realized it acted as financial-wonder fuel rather than a weakness, since those bonds could be used as collateral when hard currency was scarce.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

While bitcoin is a digital currency, it is typically priced in U.S. dollars, raising risk for investors seeking to diversify away from the greenback.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Citigroup’s institutional clients will be able to accept payments in stablecoin, which Coinbase’s blockchain will convert to government-issued currency.

From Barron's ● Sep. 28, 2026

We stared openmouthed at the huge tree that we had seen only on the back of currency.

From "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah

To be sure, gold is a classic inflation hedge — a scarce physical asset whose dollar price tends to climb as currencies lose purchasing power due to rising price pressures.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 30, 2026

Asian currencies consolidated against the dollar but may be weighed by rising oil prices that could prompt further Fed rate increases that bolster the appeal of U.S. fixed-income assets.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

Expectations for near-term U.S. rate hikes are ahead of expectations for other major central banks, which is providing the dollar with an additional lift against several currencies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

The greenback has gained 1.5% against a basket of other currencies this September, following two months of declines.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

They didn’t know the first thing about Korean stocks or third world currencies, but they didn’t really need to.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Related Words

• cash