écu
noun
the shield carried by a mounted man-at-arms in the Middle Ages.
écu
1 American
[ey-kyoo, ey-ky]
/ eɪˈkju, eɪˈkü /
noun
-
écus
plural
-
the shield carried by a mounted man-at-arms in the Middle Ages.
-
any of various gold and silver coins of France, issued from the 13th through the 18th centuries, bearing the figure of a shield.
ECU
2
American
[ey-koo, ee-see-yoo]
/ eɪˈku, ˈiˈsiˈju /
noun
E.C.U.
3
American
abbreviation
écu
1
British
/ eɪˈkjuː, eky /
noun
-
any of various former French gold or silver coins
-
a small shield
ECU
2
British
/ ˈiːˈsiːˈjuː, ˈeɪkjuː /
acronym
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of écu1
1695–1705; < French; Old French escu < Latin scūtum shield
Origin of ECU2
E(uropean) C(urrency) U(nit), perhaps with play on écu ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Charles would not or could not contribute a single écu d'or, and Joan had to solicit help and funds from the towns.
From Joan of Arc by Ronald Sutherland Gower
Then taking a little leathern purse from his breast, he slipped an écu into the mountaineer's hand.
From A Night on the Borders of the Black Forest by Amelia Ann Blanford Edwards
A pistole now represents 10 francs, and an écu 3 francs.
From Wanderings by southern waters, eastern Aquitaine by Edward Harrison Barker
The days when the diligences of Europe drew up before an old-time inn, with the sign of a pewter plate, an écu d'or, a holly branch, or a prancing white horse, have long since disappeared.
From The Automobilist Abroad by M. F. (Milburg Francisco) Mansfield
In which sport she was so taken up with her hands, that she forgot to cheat, and Denys won "écu au soleil" of her.
From The Cloister and the Hearth A Tale of the Middle Ages by Charles Reade
The ECU finding has been reported to the management of BBC Content.
From BBC ● Sep. 24, 2026
On Wednesday, the BBC's chief content officer Kate Phillips said the ECU "found this should not have made it to air and it was a clear breach of our editorial standards".
From BBC ● Apr. 8, 2026
“Our guys are swinging and missing it by, like, three feet,” ECU coach Cliff Godwin said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025
ECU criminology researchers Dr Suz Rock and Associate Professor Natalie Gately have published the first Australian study to evaluate the impact of introducing a justice facility dog to a Children's Court.
From Science Daily ● Jun. 4, 2024
It is not the currency of choice for international transactions, and as of the Maastricht negotiations, which affirmed the need for a Community currency, the ECU was not adopted for this purpose.
From The Civilization of Illiteracy by Mihai Nadin
As a holder of two degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and as an assistant professor at E.C.U.,
From Time Magazine Archive
E.C.U., for "The Esoteric Christian Union," founded by E.M. in 1891.
From The Story of Anna Kingsford and Edward Maitland and of the new Gospel of Interpretation by Edward Maitland
One of their wives is discussing the E.C.U. and the S.S.C. with a hitherto silent curate, and the other is jabbering botany to a red-faced warrior.
From Facts About Champagne and Other Sparkling Wines by Henry Vizetelly
Eleven years later Dr. Pusey wrote: "As to his being President of the E.C.U., he is the sense and moderation of it."
From Prime Ministers and Some Others A Book of Reminiscences by George William Erskine Russell
Statement, E.C.U., for "The New Gospel of Interpretation; being an Abstract of the Doctrine and Statement of the Objects of the Esoteric Christian Union," by E.M.; revised and enlarged edition, 1892.
From The Story of Anna Kingsford and Edward Maitland and of the new Gospel of Interpretation by Edward Maitland
She said her brother had her horses and her goods; she said she believed the latter amounted to some twelve thousand écus.
From Joan of Arc by Ronald Sutherland Gower
They gave themselves no rest after their long and arduous journey, but started straight back viâ the Rhine, arriving in Rotterdam on 8th September with only twenty écus remaining, having been “horribly cheated.”
From The Life and Letters of Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, Volume I (of 2) by Florence A. Thomas Marshall
Arnaud had two horses at his mother's farm; he lent one to Gaspard, I borrowed mine for two écus.
From In the Day of Adversity by John Bloundelle-Burton
If I would put down fifty écus, the cow was mine.
From Nobody's Boy Sans Famille by Florence Crewe-Jones
It was at an expense of two hundred thousand écus that the welcoming fête was accomplished.
From Royal Palaces and Parks of France by Blanche McManus
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
