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Synonyms

financier

American  
[fin-uhn-seer, fahy-nuhn-, fi-nan-see-er] / ˌfɪn ənˈsɪər, ˌfaɪ nən-, fɪˈnæn si ər /

noun

  1. a person skilled or engaged in managing large financial operations, whether public or corporate.

verb (used with object)

  1. to finance.

verb (used without object)

  1. to act as a financier.

financier British  
/ fɪˈnænsɪə, faɪ- /

noun

  1. a person who is engaged or skilled in large-scale financial operations

"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

Etymology

Origin of financier

From French, dating back to 1610–20; finance, -ier 2

Explanation

A financier is someone who handles big clients and big financial transactions. A financier is the high-profile star of a company and the envy of the overworked entry-level workers. The suffix -ier in financier tells you that this word refers to a person who has something to do with finance. But where does the word finance come from? Long ago, it meant "to settle or end a debt," which you can see in fin, the Old French word for "end." But as financial work evolved, it came to also encompass taxation and revenue, not just debt collection.

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Vocabulary lists containing financier

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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.

Reporters for mainstream and right-wing outlets alike admitted they had no idea why the first lady chose that particular moment to go on the record about her relationship with the deceased financier.

From Salon • Apr. 13, 2026

District Judge Darrin Gayles, based in Miami, Fla., ruled Trump hadn’t made a valid legal claim that he was defamed by an article about a letter to financier Jeffrey Epstein bearing Trump’s name.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026

The immediate beneficiaries of Swalwell’s fall are likely former Orange County Rep. Katie Porter and billionaire financier Tom Steyer.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026

The message seems to be referencing a 2002 New York Magazine article in which Donald Trump described Epstein as a “terrific guy” and said that he had known the financier for 15 years.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

Although he came from a modest background–his father was a farmer in upstate New York–his uncle was the supremely rich and extraordinarily indulgent financier George Peabody.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

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.