greenback

American  

[green-bak] / ˈgrinˌbæk /

noun

1. a U.S. legal-tender note, printed in green on the back since the Civil War, originally issued against the credit of the country and not against gold or silver on deposit.

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greenback British  

/ ˈɡriːnˌbæk /

noun

1. informal an inconvertible legal-tender US currency note originally issued during the Civil War in 1862

2. slang a dollar bill

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Etymology

Origin of greenback

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65; green + back ¹

Example Sentences

The equity pullback arrived on Liberation Day, while the greenback has yet to recover from its slide at the start of this year.

From MarketWatch

Some Asian currencies such as the won and the yen have weakened recently, mainly because of the surprising resilience of the greenback despite lingering expectations for further interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve.

From The Wall Street Journal

Expectations that the Federal Reserve could continue to lower U.S. interest rates, while rates in other major economies hold steady or climb, has also contributed to the greenback’s struggles.

From MarketWatch

Meanwhile, the greenback was also helped by a weaker Japanese yen after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates as expected but failed to boost expectations for further imminent rate rises.

From The Wall Street Journal

Among her financial coups was accumulating devalued U.S. currency, the original greenbacks, issued during the Civil War.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• currency