demonetize

[ dee-mon-i-tahyz, -muhn- ]

/ diˈmɒn ɪˌtaɪz, -ˈmʌn- /

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verb (used with object), de·mon·e·tized, de·mon·e·tiz·ing.

to divest (a monetary standard or the like) of value.

to withdraw (money or the like) from use.

to deprive (an issue of postage stamps) of validity by legal methods and without marking the stamps themselves.

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Also especially British, de·mon·e·tise .

Origin of demonetize

From the French word démonétiser, dating back to 1850–55. See de-, monetize

OTHER WORDS FROM demonetize

de·mon·e·ti·za·tion, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use demonetize in a sentence

He's our greatest authority on the demonetization of wampum.
The Main Chance|Meredith Nicholson
The demonetization of groceries is doing as much toward the general wiggly palsy of trade as anything I know of.
Remarks|Bill Nye
The financial managers threw gold out of use and then urged its non-use as a reason for its demonetization.
If Not Silver, What?|John W. Bookwalter
But suppose there had been a general demonetization of gold instead of silver, how would the ratio have stood then?
If Not Silver, What?|John W. Bookwalter

And with this the people began to get at the true reason—the general demonetization by so many nations.
If Not Silver, What?|John W. Bookwalter

British Dictionary definitions for demonetize

demonetize

demonetise

/ (diːˈmʌnɪˌtaɪz) /

verb (tr)

to deprive (a metal) of its capacity as a monetary standard

to withdraw from use as currency

Derived forms of demonetize

demonetization or demonetisation, noun

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