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• treasury
  treasury

  noun

  a place where the funds of the government, of a corporation, or the like are deposited, kept, and disbursed.
• Treasury
  Treasury

  noun

  (in various countries) the government department in charge of finance. In Britain the Treasury is also responsible for economic strategy

treasury

American  

[trezh-uh-ree] / ˈtrɛʒ ə ri /

noun

• treasuries
  plural

1. a place where the funds of the government, of a corporation, or the like are deposited, kept, and disbursed.

2. funds or revenue of a government, public or private corporation, etc.

3. (initial capital letter) the department of government that has control over the collection, management, and disbursement of the public revenue.

4. a building, room, chest, or other place for the preservation of treasure or valuable objects.

5. a collection or supply of excellent or highly prized writings, works of art, etc..

   a treasury of American poetry.

6. Informal. Treasuries, Treasury bills, bonds, and notes.

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treasury ¹ British  

/ ˈtrɛʒərɪ /

noun

1. a storage place for treasure

2. the revenues or funds of a government, private organization, or individual

3. a place where funds are kept and disbursed

4. Also: treasure house. a collection or source of valuable items

   a treasury of information

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Treasury ² British  

/ ˈtrɛʒərɪ /

noun

1. (in various countries) the government department in charge of finance. In Britain the Treasury is also responsible for economic strategy

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• treasuries
  plural

Etymology

Origin of treasury

1250–1300; Middle English tresorie < Old French. See treasure, -y ³

Explanation

A treasury is a kind of bank — it's a place where money and other valuable things are kept, or where a country keeps its wealth. You might guess that a treasury is a place to keep your treasure, and you'd be right. Originally, the word literally meant "room for treasure," from the Old French tresor, "hoard or treasure." Starting in the late 1300s, it also meant "department that controls public revenue," which remains the most common use of treasury today. The U.S. even has an official Department of the Treasury, the part of the executive branch that prints money and collects taxes.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

treasury Treasury treasuries

The German Finance Agency will publish its quarterly debt issuance review for the fourth quarter on Thursday, while the Italian treasury will also publish its quarterly funding guidance on the same day.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026

However, in addition to the overall cost to the US treasury, the latest offer from the US president may raise legal questions.

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

The billionaire investor, who worked with the treasury secretary at Soros Fund Management, voiced his disapproval of Bessent’s tactics in a strongly-worded oped published in the Wall Street Journal Monday.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026

Lord O'Neill, a crossbench peer, was once a treasury minister under the Conservatives.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

The Nation’s treasury purchased the home, and Mr. Muhammad soon moved there.

From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey

And right now, the 2-year Treasury is pricing in the risk of a more-aggressive series of rate increases than what the Fed itself is currently contemplating.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

A September spike in Treasury yields, which were edging higher Tuesday after climbing at the long end to the highest levels in decades, has sent bond prices lower in a broad and punishing selloff.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

That isn’t much less than what the 10-year Treasury is paying at over 5.2%.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 29, 2026

The yield on the two-year Treasury is already higher than the path projected by the Federal Open Market Committee’s forecasts, Wilson pointed out.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026

Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton and his wife fell ill with the fever on September 5, and left the city.

From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy

“However, the market reaction overnight was telling: as the U.S. dollar remains the current safe haven through this even as U.S. treasuries came under strong pressure yesterday,” he added.

From Barron's ● Mar. 3, 2026

Over the last year, banks and other financial services firms have made it easier for small investors to buy crypto — exchange traded funds and firms that have constructed themselves as crypto treasuries have proliferated.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 28, 2025

What we’re seeing now is like a silent IPO: early, oversized holders distributing to a much broader base of buyers who came in through ETFs, brokerages and corporate treasuries.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 17, 2025

Skeptics have been anticipating the pullback, given that crypto treasuries often trade at a premium to the underlying value of the tokens they hold.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2025

The authorities both local and national had to spend every penny in their treasuries and every second of time in the sole task of dealing with the chaos.

From "The Book of Dust: La Belle Sauvage" by Philip Pullman

Related Words

• bank
• coffer
• exchequer