coinage

American  

[koi-nij] / ˈkɔɪ nɪdʒ /

noun

1. the act, process, or right of making coins.

2. the categories, types, or quantity of coins issued by a nation.

3. coins collectively; currency.

4. the act or process of inventing words; neologizing.

5. an invented or newly created word or phrase.

   “Ecdysiast” is a coinage of H. L. Mencken.

6. anything made, invented, or fabricated.

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coinage British  

/ ˈkɔɪnɪdʒ /

noun

1. coins collectively

2. the act of striking coins

3. the currency of a country

4. the act of inventing something, esp a word or phrase

5. a newly invented word, phrase, usage, etc

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Other Word Forms

• miscoinage noun
• noncoinage noun
• recoinage noun

Etymology

Origin of coinage

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English word from Middle French word coignaige. See coin, -age

Explanation

Coinage refers to metal money, or coins. A numismatist — that's the technical term for a coin collector — is interested in coinage. Coinage is also the process of coming up with a new word. You probably wouldn't refer to the dimes jingling in your pocket as coinage, since this term tends to be used for coins in a more collective way, as in the coinage of foreign countries. Another way to use coinage is for the process of inventing (or coining) a new word. Shakespeare is famous for a lot of literary achievements, including his coinage of words like "lackluster," "bandit," and "bedazzled."

Example Sentences

Men are now joining women in obsessing over trimester zero, a coinage referring to the months leading up to conception.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 10, 2026

The coinage is a nod to Brünnhilde, a soprano role stereotypically portrayed as a robust figure in a horned helmet.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026

It was presumably dropped into the federal melting pot to become the first but unacknowledged coinage of California gold.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 11, 2025

The Royal Mint, based in Llantrisant, Rhondda Cynon Taf in Wales, has made the circulating coinage of each of Britain’s monarchs since Alfred the Great, Ms Morgan said.

From BBC • Aug. 19, 2024

She felt around the bottom of the gunnysack until her fingers found the lump of coinage.

From "Lyddie" by Katherine Paterson