financial
Americanadjective
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pertaining to monetary receipts and expenditures; pertaining or relating to money matters; pecuniary.
financial operations.
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of or relating to those commonly engaged in dealing with money and credit.
noun
adjective
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of or relating to finance or finances
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of or relating to persons who manage money, capital, or credit
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informal having money; in funds
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(of a club member) fully paid-up
Synonym Usage
Financial, fiscal, monetary, pecuniary refer to matters concerned with money. Financial usually refers to money matters or transactions of some size or importance: a financial wizard. Fiscal is used especially in connection with government funds, or those of any organization: the end of the fiscal year. Monetary relates especially to money as such: a monetary system or standard. Pecuniary refers to money as used in making ordinary payments: a pecuniary obligation or reward.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of financial
Explanation
If you are short on cash, you might say you have a financial problem. Talking about finances is a polite and formal way to refer to money. The similarity between the words financial and finish is no accident. Both come from the Old French word fine, which was generally used to mean "end" or "finish" and more specifically to mean "end a debt." If you pay a fine, you end the debt you owe society for, say, spitting your gum on the sidewalk, or failing to clean up after your dog.
Vocabulary lists containing financial
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Michelle Obama's final address as First Lady (2017)
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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.
Ray Dalio, founder of Bridgewater Associates, has warned that AI stocks have become detached from financial fundamentals, pushing markets to precarious highs.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 25, 2026
Meghan’s half-sister, Samantha Markle, has also defended their father, accusing their brother Thomas Jr. of fabricating the allegations for financial gain and claiming the computers had been outside their father’s possession for two years.
From Salon ● Oct. 25, 2026
The kingdom offered financial support to cover government employees’ salaries in San’a during several years of relative quiet, but fighting resumed this summer and quickly escalated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026
Figures show that the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board was due to pay Bangor University £110,686 this financial year to fund two researchers in the Centre for Mental Health and Society.
From BBC ● Oct. 25, 2026
I would have to become our breadwinner and carry all of the financial weight.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
