gold certificate

noun

1. a former U.S. paper currency issued by the federal government for circulation from 1865 to 1933, equal to and redeemable for gold to a stated value.

gold certificate

noun

1. a currency note issued exclusively to the Federal Reserve Banks by the US Treasury. It forms a claim on gold reserves deposited by the Federal Reserve Banks at the Treasury and is used to transfer interbank balances within the Federal Reserve System

2. Also called: gold note. (formerly) a banknote issued by the US Treasury to the public and redeemable in gold

Word History and Origins

Origin of gold certificate¹

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65

Example Sentences

The investigation, led by the New Jersey State Police and splashed across front pages worldwide, raged on until September 1934, when a $10 gold certificate from the ransom payment was used to buy gasoline in New York.

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A silver certificate for $1,000 weighs no more than a gold certificate for the same amount.

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The lawyer opened the interview by handing Barlow a new twenty-dollar gold certificate, which the lout took eagerly with an idiotic grin, before he even inquired what it was for, and Logan knew he had him.

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One at a time, please," says I. "The amount o' the cash transaction was a twenty-dollar gold certificate.

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From the point of view of cover, the gold certificate is completely inelastic.

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