billon

[ bil-uhn ]

noun
  1. an alloy used in coinage, consisting of gold or silver with a larger amount of base metal.

  2. an alloy of silver with copper or the like, used for coins of small denomination.

  1. any coin struck from such an alloy.

Origin of billon

1
1720–30; <French: debased metal, originally ingot, equivalent to Middle French bille log (see billet2) + -on noun suffix

Words Nearby billon

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How to use billon in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for billon

billon

/ (ˈbɪlən) /


noun
  1. an alloy consisting of gold or silver and a base metal, usually copper, used esp for coinage

  2. any coin made of such an alloy

Origin of billon

1
C18: from Old French: ingot, from bille log; see billet ²

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