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aureus

[awr-ee-uh s]
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noun, plural au·re·i [awr-ee-ahy] /ˈɔr iˌaɪ/.
  1. a gold coin and monetary unit of ancient Rome, from Caesar to Constantine I.
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Origin of aureus

1600–10; < Latin: literally, golden
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for aureus

Historical Examples

  • Croto, if I gave you an aureus, would you swear to let me have a chance to escape?

    Darkness and Dawn

    Frederic W. Farrar

  • I once gave an aureus to a man named Croto to let me escape from a slave-prison.

    Darkness and Dawn

    Frederic W. Farrar

  • He understood the aureus calculus and could cast a horoscope with any man living.

  • This tribute is three, or two, or one aureus, or for a meaner person thirteen deniers.

  • The reverse of an aureus of the reign of Titus represents the Colosseum with these statues and a quadriga in the centre.

British Dictionary definitions for aureus

aureus

noun plural aurei (ˈɔːrɪˌaɪ)
  1. a gold coin of the Roman Empire
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Word Origin

Latin: golden; see aureate
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